Gospel  of  Buddhism 


Ananda  Coomaraswamy 


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/2.  .8-,  l6 , 


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Purchased    by  the 
Mrs.   Robert   Lenox   Kennedy  Church   History   Fund. 


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Chinese,  Long-men  (6th  century.  A.n  ).     After  Chavannes,    Mission 
archcBologique  dans  la  Chine  septenlrionale 


BUDDHA    AND    THE 
GOSPEL  OF  BUDDHISM 


BUDDHA  AND  THE 
GOSPEL  OF  BUDDHISM 


»/ 


sr 


ANANDA  COOMARASWAMY  D.Sc. 

AUTHOR    OF   "ARTS  AND   CRAFTS  OF   INDIA    AND   CEYLON"    "RAJPUT 

painting"    AND    "ESSAYS    IN    NATIONAL    IDEALISM"    JOINT-AUTHOR 

OF   "MYTHS   OF   THE    HINDUS   AND    BUDDHISTS" 


DEC    r.   1916 


WITH  ILLUSTRATIONS  IN  COLOUR   BY 

ABANINDRO   NATHTAGORE  CLE. 
y  NANDA  LAL  BOSE 

AND  THIRTY-TWO  REPRODUCTIONS  IN 
BLACK   AND     WHITE   FROM   PHOTOGRAPHS 


NEW  YORK 
G.  p.  PUTNAM'S  SONS 

I  9  I  6 


TO 

A.  E. 


PRINTED  AT 
THF<  BALLANTYNE  PRESS 
LONDON, ENGLAND 


PREFACE 

THE  aim  of  this  book  is  to  set  forth  as  simply  as 
possible  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism  according  to  the 
Buddhist  scriptures,  and  to  consider  the  Buddhist 
systems  in  relation,  on  the  one  hand,  to  the  Brahmanical 
systems  in  which  they  originate,  and,  on  the  other  hand, 
to  those  systems  of  Christian  mysticism  which  afford  the 
nearest  analogies.  At  the  same  time  the  endeavour  has 
been  made  to  illustrate  the  part  which  Buddhist  thought 
has  played  in  the  whole  development  of  Asiatic  culture,  and 
to  suggest  a  part  of  the  significance  it  may  still  possess 
for  modern  thinkers. 

The  way  of  the  Buddha  is  not,  indeed,  concerned  directly 
with  the  order  of  the  world,  for  it  calls  on  higher  men  to 
leave  the  market-place.  But  the  order  of  the  world  can 
only  be  established  on  a  foundation  of  knowledge  :  every 
evil  is  ultimately  traceable  to  ignorance.  It  is  necessary, 
then,  to  recognize  the  world  for  what  it  truly  is.  Gautama 
teaches  us  that  the  marks  of  this  life  are  imperfection, 
transcience,  and  the  absence  of  any  changeless  individu- 
ality. He  sets  before  us  a  siwimum  bomini  closely  akin 
to  the  Christian  mystic  conception  of  '  self-naughting.' 
Here  are  definite  statements  which  must  be  either  true  or 
false,  and  a  clearly  defined  goal  which  we  must  either 
accept  or  refuse.  If  the  statements  be  false,  and  if  the 
goal  be  worthless,  it  is  of  the  highest  importance  that  the 
former  should  be  refuted  and  the  latter  discredited.  But 
if  the  diagnosis  be  correct  and  the  aim  worthy,  it  is  at 
least  of  equal  importance  that  this  should  be  generally 
recognized  :  for  we  cannot  wish  to  perpetuate  as  the  basis 
of  our  sociology  a  view  of  life  that  is  demonstrably  false 
or  a  purpose  demonstrably  contrary  to  our  conception  of 
the  good. 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

This  book  is  designed,  therefore,  not  as  an  addition  to 
our  already  over  burdened  libraries  of  information,  but 
as  a  definite  contribution  to  the  philosophy  of  life.     Our 
study  of  alien   modes    of  thought    and   feeling,   if   it  is 
to  be  of  any  real  use  to  us,  must  be  inspired  by  other 
than  curious    motives    or   a   desire  to  justify    our    own 
system.     For  the  common  civilization  of  the  world  we 
need  a  common  will,  a  recognition  of  common  problems, 
and  to  co-operate    in   their  solution.      At  this  moment, 
when  the  Western  world  is  beginning  to  realize  that  it 
has  failed  to  attain  the  fruit  of  life  in  a  society  based 
on   competition  and  self-assertion,  their  lies  a  profound 
significance  in  the  discovery  of  Asiatic  thought,  where 
it  is  affirmed  with  no  uncertain  voice  that  the  fruit  of 
life  can  only  be  attained  in  a  society  based  on  the  con- 
ception of  moral  order  and  mutual   responsibility.     Let 
me  illustrate  by  a  single  quotation  the  marvellous  direct- 
ness  and    sincerity   of   the   social    ethic    to   which    the 
psychology  of   Buddhism   affords   its  sanction :    Victory 
breeds  hatred,  for  the  conquered  is  unhappy. 
Stories  are  told    of  Asiatic  rulers   paying  the   price  of 
kino-doms  for  a  single  word  of  profitable  counsel.     One 
may  well   inquire    whether  any  conceivable  price  could 
have  been  too  high  for  Europe  to  have  paid  for  a  general 
recognition  of  this  truth,  ere  now.     There   is,  again,  a 
passage  of  the  Ruru-deer  Jataka  which  is  perhaps  unique 
in  all  literature  in  its  supreme  tenderness  and  courtesy: 
For  who — the    Bodhisattva    asks — would  zmllingly   use 
harsh   speech   to   those    who    have   done    a    sinful  deed, 
strewing    salt,   as   it   zve7'e,   upon    the    wound    of   their 

fault  ? 

It  is  with   gifts  such   as  this  that   Buddhism,   and  the 
Hinduism  from  which  it  issues  and   into  which   it  has 


VI 


Preface 

again  merged,  stand  over  against  the  world  of  laissez 
/aire,  demanding  of  their  followers  only  the  abandon- 
ment of  all  resentment,  coveting,  and  dulness,  and  offering 
in  return  a  happiness  and  peace  beyond  our  reasonable 
understandinor-  Can  we  denv  that  modes  of  thought 
which  find  expression  thus  must  for  ever  command  our 
deepest  sympathy  and  most  profound  consideration  ? 
It  is  not  possible  that  liberation  from  resentment, 
covetinof,  and  dulness,  should  ever  be  ill-timed  :  and 
it  is  just  this  liberation  which  constitutes  the  ethical 
factor  in  Nibbana,  where  the  psychological  part  is  self- 
forgetfulness. 

It  will  be  plainly  seen  to  what  extent  I  am  indebted  to  the 
work  of  other  scholars  and  students,  and  I  wish  to  make 
a  frank  and  grateful  acknowledgment  to  all  those  from 
whose  work  I  have  freely  quoted,  particularly  Professor 
and  Mrs  Rhys  Davids  and  Professor  Oldenberg,  as  well 
as  to  others  to  whom  I  am  indebted  for  the  use  of  photo- 
graphs. The  latter,  reproduced  in  monochrome,  illustrate 
the  history  of  Buddhist  art :  but  beside  this,  the  work  of 
modern  Indian  painters  illustrating  Buddhist  thought  and 
legend  is  reproduced  in  colour. 

A  few  suggestions  may  be  useful  as  a  guide  to  pro- 
nunciation. Vowels  generally  are  pronounced  as  in 
Italian:  a  as  in  America,  a  as  m /at/ie7',  e  2iS  a  m  nave, 
i  as  in  it,  I  as  ec  in  greet,  o  as  in  note,  u  as  oo  in  room, 
u  as  00  in  boot :  ai  has  the  sound  of  i  in  bite,  au  the  sound 
of  ow  in  cow.  Every  consonant  is  distinctly  pronounced, 
and  aspirates  are  distinctly  heard.  C  has  the  sound  of 
ck  in  ckw'ch,  while  i^  in  some  cases  has  the  sound  of  sh, 
e.g.  in  Siva,  Isvara,  Sankara,  etc.  The  accent  falls  on 
the  first  syllable  or  the  third,  rarely  or  never  on  the 
second. 

vii 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Certain  words,  such  as  kamma,  Nibbdna,  Bodhisatta,  etc., 
are  quoted  in  these  Pali  forms  where  Hinayana  Buddhism 
is  in  question,  and  in  the  more  familiar  Sanskrit  forms 
karfna^  Nirvana,  Bodkisattva,  where  the  reference  is  to 
Mahayana. 

ANANDA  COOMARASWAMY 
London,  February  8,  191 6 


Vlii 


CONTENTS 

PART  I  :  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  BUDDHA  9K 


PAGE 


PART  II  :  THE  GOSPEL  OF  EARLY 
BUDDHISM 

I     DHAMMA  90 

II     SAMSARA  AND  KAMMA  (KARMA)  104 

III  BUDDHIST  HEAVENS  AND  HOW  TO  REACH 

THEM  no 

IV  NIBBANA  lis 
V     ETHICS  126 

VI     CONSCIENCE  137 

VII     SPIRITUAL  EXERCISES  141 

VIII     CONSOLATION  148 

IX     THE  ORDER  151 

X     TOLERANCE  155 

XI     WOMEN  159 

XII  EARLY  BUDDHISM  AND  NATURE  166 

XIII  BUDDHIST  PESSIMISM  176 

XIV  A  BUDDHIST  EMPEROR  180 

PART  III  :  CONTEMPORARY  SYSTEMS 

I     VEDANTA  187 

II     SAMKHYA  194 

III  YOGA  196 

IV  BUDDHISM  AND  BRAHMANISM  198 

A  I 


GLOSSARY 
INDEX 


PAGE 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

PART  IV  :  THE   MAHAYANA 

I  BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  MAHAYANA  222 
II    SYSTEM  OF  THE  MAHAYANA  226 

III     CH'AN,  OR  ZEN  BUDDHISM  252 

PART  V  :  BUDDHIST  ART 

I    LITERATURE  259 

II  SCULPTURE  AND  PAINTING  323 

BIBLIOGRAPHY  34.7 


351 
359 


LIST  OF  PLATES 

Facing 
PLATE  fage 

A     The  Forty-Nine  Days  (Ceylon)  36 

B     The  First  Sermon  (Sarnath)  38 

C     The  First  Sermon  (Nepal)  40 

D     The  Buddha  Teaching  (Japan)  42 

E     Standing  Image  of  the  Buddha  (Mathura)  46 

F     Rock-cut  Image  of  the  Buddha  (Long-men,  China)  52 

G     Standing  Image  of  the  Buddha  with  Attendants 

(Chinese)  66 

H     The  Quelling  of  Malagiri  (AmaravatI)  68 

J     The  Death  of  the  Buddha  (Polonnaruva)  80 

K     The  Buddha  in  Samadhi  (Anuradhapura)  146 

L     Buddhist  Monk  (Chinese)  152 

M     Monastery  and  Temple-Court  (Chinese)  154 

N     Buddhist  Temples  in  Ceylon  156 

O     SsnchI  StOpa  and  Gateway  1 84 

P     Capital  of  Asoka  Column  (Sarnath)  186 

Q     Lay-Worshippers  at  a  Buddha  Shrine  (AmaravatI)  224 

R     Avalokitesvara  (Nepal)  230 

S     Maitreva  (Ceylon)  236 

T     Mara's  Battle  and  a  Buddhist  Library  (Ceylon)  262 

U     The  Buddha  Teaching  (Laos)  274 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Facing 

PLATE  /"z^e 

W     YakkhI  and  NagarSja  (Bharhut)  322 

X     YakkhI  (Sancht)  324 

Y     Standing  Image  of  the  Buddha  (Anuradhapura)  326 

Z     Images  of  the  Buddha  and  of  Bodhisattvas  (Ceylon 

and  China)  3*8 

AA     Thk  First  Sermon  (Gandhara)  33° 

BB     The  Buddha  (Cambodia)  33^ 

CC     Bodhisattva,  perhaps  Avalokitesvara  (Ajanta)  334 

DD     ManjusrI  (Java)  336 

EE     Bodhisattva  (China)  338 

FF     The  Buddha  (China)  340 

GG     Kwanyin  (Japan)  342 

HH     Kwanyin  (China)  344 


LIST  OF  PLATES   IN  COLOUR 

The  Temptation  of  Buddha                  Nanda  Lai  Bose  Frontispiece 

PAGE 

The  Departure  of  Buddha                     Nanda  Lai  Bose  24 

SujATA  AND  the  Bowl  OF  MiLK-RiCE     Natida  Lai  Bose  30 

Yasodhara  and  Rahula                           Nanda  Lai  Bose  50 

Buddha  and  Ananda                                  Nanda  Lai  Bose  76 

The  Final  Release                                    Abanindro  Nath  Tagore  88 

The  Victory  of  Buddha                         Abanindro  Nath  Tagore  126 

Buddha  as  Mendicant                              Abanindro  Nath  Tagore  150 


1^ 


QUOTATIONS 

1 7V ill  go  down  to  self-annihilation  and  eternal  death, 
Lest  the  Last  Judgment  come  and  find  me  unannihilate. 
And  I  be  seiz'd  and  giv'n  into  the  hands  of  my  own  Selfhood. 

Blake,  "  Milton." 

Bj(t,  alas,  how  hard  it  is  for  the   Will  to  sink  into  nothing,  to  attract 
nothing,  to  imagine  nothifig. 

Let  it  be  granted  that  it  is  so.     Is  it  not  surely  worth  thy  while,  and  all 
that  thou  canst  ever  do  ? 

Behmen,  ''•  Dialogues T 

Not  I,  not  any  one  else  can  travel  that  road  for  you.  You  must  travel  it 
for  yourself  . 

Walt  Whitman. 

You  cannot  step  twice  into  the  same  waters,  for  fresh  waters  are  ever 
flowing  in  upon  you. 

Herakleitus. 

Vraiement  comencent  amours  en  ioye  et  fynissent  en  dolours. 

Merlin. 

By  a  man  without  passions  I  mean  one  who  does  not  permit  good  and 
evil  to  disturb  his  internal  economy,  but  rather  falls  in  with  whatever 
happens,  as  a  ^natter  of  course,  and  does  not  add  to  the  sum  of  his 
mortality. 

Chiang  Tau. 

Profound,  O  Vaccha,  is  this  doctrine,  recondite,  and  difficult  of  compre- 
hension, good,  excellent,  and  not  to  be  reached  by  mere  reasoning,  subtile, 
and  intelligible  only  to  the  wise ;  and  it  is  a  hard  doctrine  for  you  to  learn, 
xvho  belong  to  another  sect,  to  another  faith,  to  another  persuasion,  to 
another  discipline,  and  sit  at  the  feet  of  another  teacher. 

'  Maffhima  Nikaya,'  ''  Sutta  72." 


PART  I  :  THE  LIFE  OF  THE  BUDDHA 

His  Birth 

THE  name  Buddha,  '  the  Knower,'  'the  Enlightened,' 
'the  Wake,'  is  the  appellation  by  which  the 
wandering  preaching  friar  Gautama  became  best 
known  to  his  disciples.  Of  this  man  we  are  able  to  say 
with  some  certainty  that  he  was  born  in  the  year  563  B.C. 
and  died  in  483  B.C.  He  was  the  heir  of  a  ruling 
house  of  the  Sakyas,  whose  little  kingdom,  a  rich  irrigated 
plain  between  the  Nepalese  foot-hills  and  the  river  Rapti, 
lay  to  the  north-east  of  the  present  province  of  Oudh. 
To  the  south-west  lay  the  larger  and  more  powerful 
kingdom  of  the  Kosalas,  to  whom  the  Sakyas  owed  a 
nominal  allegiance.  The  Buddha's  personal  name  was 
Siddhattha,  his  family  name  Gautama,  his  father's  name 
Suddhodana,  his  mother's  Maya.  It  is  only  in  later 
legend  that  Suddhodana  is  represented  as  a  great  king; 
most  likely  he  was  in  fact  a  wealthy  knight  and  land- 
owner. Siddhattha's  mother  died  seven  days  after  his  birth, 
and  her  sister  MahajapatI,  another  wife  of  Suddhodana, 
filled  the  place  of  mother  to  the  young  prince.  He  was 
brought  up  in  Kapilavatthu,  a  busy  provincial  capital ;  he 
was  trained  in  martial  exercises,  riding,  and  outdoor  life 
generally,  and  in  all  knightly  accomplishments,  but  it  is 
not  indicated  in  the  early  books  that  he  was  accomplished 
in  Brahmanical  lore.  In  accordance  with  the  custom  of  well- 
to-do  youths,  he  occupied  three  different  houses  in  winter, 
summer,  and  the  rainy  season,  these  houses  being  provided 
with  beautiful  pleasure  gardens  and  a  good  deal  of  simple 
luxury.  It  is  recorded  that  he  was  married,  and  had  a 
son,  by  name  Rahula,  who  afterwards  became  his  disciple. 
Siddhattha    experienced    the    intellectual    and    spiritual 

9 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

unrest  of  his  age,  and  felt  a  growing  dissatisfaction  with 
the  world  of  pleasure  in  which  he  moved,  a  dissatisfaction 
rooted  in  the  fact  of  its  transience  and  uncertainty,  and  of 
man's  subjection  to  all  the  ills  of  mortality.  Suddhodana 
feared  that  these  thoucjhts  would  lead  to  the  loss  of  his 
son,  who  would  become  a  hermit,  as  was  the  tendency 
of  the  thinkers  of  the  time;  and  these  fears  were  well 
founded,  for  in  spite  of  every  pleasure  and  luxury  that 
could  be  devised  to  withhold  him,  Siddhattha  ultimately 
left  his  home  to  adopt  the  '  homeless  life '  of  the 
'Wanderer,'  a  seeker  after  truth  that  should  avail  to 
liberate  all  men  from  the  bondage  of  mortality.  Such 
enlightenment  he  found  after  years  of  search.  Thereafter, 
during  a  long  ministry  as  a  wandering  preacher,  he  taught 
the  Four  Ariyan  Truths  and  the  Eightfold  Path  ;  attract- 
ing many  disciples,  he  founded  a  monastic  order  as  a 
refuge  for  higher  men,  the  seekers  for  everlasting  freedom 
and  unshakable  peace.  He  died  at  the  age  of  eighty. 
After  his  death  his  disciples  gathered  together  the 
"Words  of  the  Enlightened  One,"  and  from  this  nucleus 
there  grew  up  in  the  course  of  a  few  centuries  the  whole 
body  of  the  Pali  canon,  and  ultimately,  under  slightly 
different  interpretation,  the  whole  mass  of  the  Mahayana 
Sutras.  That  so  much  of  the  story  represents  literal  fact 
is  not  only  very  possible,  but  extremely  probable  ;  for 
there  is  nothing  here  which  is  not  in  perfect  accordance 
with  the  life  of  that  age  and  the  natural  development  of 
Indian  thought.  We  know,  for  example,  that  many 
groups  of  wandering  ascetics  were  engaged  in  the  same 
quest,  and  that  they  were  largely  recruited  from  an  intel- 
lectual and  social  aristocracy  to  whom  the  pretensions  of 
Brahmanical  priestcraft  were  no  longer  acceptable,  and  who 
were  no  less  out  of  sympathy  with  the  multitudinous  cults 

lO 


The  Legendary  Buddha 

of  popular  animism.  We  know  the  name  of  at  least  one 
other  princely  ascetic,  Vardhamana,  a  contemporary  of  the 
Buddha,  and  the  founder  of  the  monastic  system  of  the 
Jainas. 

The  Legendary  Buddha 

But  while  it  is  easy  to  extract  from  the  Buddhist  books 
such  a  nucleus  of  fact  as  is  outlined  above,  the  materials 
for  a  more  circumstantial  biography  of  the  Buddha, 
extensive  as  they  are,  cannot  be  regarded  as  historical  in 
the  scientific  usage  of  the  word.  What  is,  however,  far 
more  important  than  the  record  of  fact,  is  the  expression 
of  all  that  the  facts,  as  understood,  implied  to  those  to 
whom  they  were  a  living  inspiration ;  and  it  is  just  this 
expression  of  what  the  life  of  Buddha  meant  to  Buddhists, 
or  Bauddhas,  as  the  followers  of  Gautama  are  more 
properly  called,  that  we  find  in  the  legendary  lives,  such 
as  the  Lalitavistara,  which  is  familiar  to  Western  readers 
in  Sir  Edwin  Arnold's  Light  of  Asia.  Here,  then,  we 
shall  relate  the  life  of  Buddha  in  some  detail,  from  the 
various  sources  indicated,^  regardless  of  the  fact  that  these 
presuppose  a  doctrinal  development  which  can  only  have 
taken  place  after  the  Buddha's  death ;  for  the  miraculous 
and  mythological  elements  are  always  very  transparent 
and  artistic.  The  history  of  the  Buddha  begins  with  the 
resolve  of  the  individual  Brahman  Su^nedha,  long  ago,  to 
become  a  Buddha  in  some  future  birth,that  he  might  spread 
abroad  saving  truth  for  the  help  of  suffering  humanity. 
Countless  ages  ago  this  same  Sumedha,  retiring  one  day 
to  the  upper  chamber  of  his  house,  seated  himself  and 
fell    into  thought :  "  Behold,    I  am    subject  to    birth,  to 

^  Chiefly  the  Nidanakathd  (introduction  to  the  PaJi  Jatakas),  the 
Maha  Parinibbana  Suita,  and  the  Lalitavistara. 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

decay,  to  disease,  and  to  death ;  it  is  right,  then,  that  I 
should  strive  to  win  the  irreat  deathless  Nibbana,  which 
is  tranquil,  and  free  from  birth  and  decay,  sickness,  and 
woe  and  weal.  Surely  there  must  be  a  road  that  leads  to 
Nibbana  and  releases  man  from  existence."  Accordingly, 
he  gave  away  all  his  wealth  and  adopted  the  life  of  a 
hermit  in  the  forest.  At  that  time  Dipankara  Buddha 
appeared  in  the  world,  and  attained  enlightenment.  It 
happened  one  day  that  Dipankara  Buddha  was  to  pass 
that  way,  and  men  were  preparing  the  road  for  him. 
Sumedha  asked  and  received  permission  to  join  in  the 
work,  and  not  only  did  he  do  so,  but  when  Dipankara 
came  Sumedha  laid  himself  down  in  the  mud,  so  that  the 
Buddha  might  walk  upon  his  body  without  soiling  his 
feet.  Then  Dipankara's  attention  was  aroused  and  he 
became  aware  of  Sumedha's  intention  to  become  a  Buddha, 
and,  looking  countless  ages  into  the  future,  he  saw  that  he 
would  become  a  Buddha  of  the  name  of  Gautama,  and  he 
prophesied  accordingly.  Thereupon  Sumedha  rejoiced, 
and,  rejecting  the  immediate  prospect  of  becoming  an 
Arahat,  as  the  disciple  of  Dipankara,  "  Let  me  rather," 
he  said,  "  like  Dipankara,  having  risen  to  the  supreme 
knowledge  of  the  truth,  enable  all  men  to  enter  the  ship 
of  truth,  and  thus  I  may  bear  them  over  the  Sea  of 
Existence,  and  then  only  let  me  realize  Nibbana  myself." 

Incarnation  of  the  Btiddha 

When  Dipankara  with  all  his  followers  had  passed  by 
Sumedha  examined  the  Ten  Perfections  indispensable  to 
Buddahood,  and  determined  to  practise  them  in  his  future 
births.  So  it  came  to  pass,  until  in  the  last  of  these  births 
the  Bodhisatta  was  reborn  as  Prince  Vessantara,  who 
exhibited  the  Perfection  of  Supernatural  Generosity,  and 
1^ 


Incarnation  of  the  Buddha 

in  due  time  passed  away  and  dwelt    in    the    Heaven  of 
Delight.     When  the  time  had  come  for  the  Bodhisatta 
to  return  to  earth  for  the  last  time,  the  deities  of  the  ten 
thousand  world-systems  assembled  together,  and,  approach- 
ing  the    Bodhisatta    in    the    Heaven    of    Delight,    said: 
"  Now  has  the  moment   come,  O  Blessed  One,   for  thy    > 
Buddhahood  ;  now  has  the  time,  O  Blessed  One,  arrived  !  " 
Then  the  Bodhisatta  considered  the  time,  the  continent, 
the  district,  the  tribe,  and  the  mother,  and,  having  deter- 
mined these,  he  assented,  saying:  "The  time  has  come, 
O  Blessed  Ones,  for  me  to  become  a  Buddha."     And  even 
as  he  was  walking  there  in  the  Grove    of   Gladness  he 
departed  thence  and  was  conceived  in  the  womb  of  the 
lady  Maha  Maya.     The  manner  of  the  conception  is  ex- 
plained as  follows.     At  the  time  of  the  midsummer  festival 
in  Kapilavatthu,  Maha  Maya,  the  lady  of  Suddhodana,  lay 
on  her  couch  and  dreamed  a  dream.     She  dreamt  that 
the  Four  Guardians  of  the  Quarters  lifted  her  up  and  bore 
her  away  to  the  Himalayas,  and  there  she  was  bathed  in 
the  Anotatta  lake  and  lay  down  to  rest  on  a  heavenly 
couch  within  a  golden  mansion  on  Silver  Hill.     Then  the 
Bodhisatta,  who  had  become  a  beautiful  white  elephant, 
bearing  in  his  trunk  a  white  lotus  flower,  approached  from 
the  North,  and  seemed  to  touch  her  right  side  and  to  enter 
her  womb.     The  next  day  when  she  awoke  she  related 
the  dream  to  her  lord,  and    it  was    interpreted    by  the 
Brahmans  as  follows :  that  the  lady  had  conceived  a  man- 
child  who,  should  he  adopt  the  life   of   a  householder, 
would  become  a  Universal  Monarch ;  but  if  he  adopted 
the  religious  life  he  would  become  a  Buddha,  removing  from 
the  world  the  veils  of  ignorance  and  sin. 
It   should    be    told    also    that   at    the    moment    of    ttie 
incarnation  the  heavens  and  the  earth  showed  signs,  the 


13 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

dumb  spake,  the  lame  walked,  all  men  began  to  speak 
kindly,  musical  instruments  played  of  themselves,  the 
earth  was  covered  with  lotus  flowers,  and  lotuses  descended 
from  the  sky,  and  every  tree  put  forth  its  flowers.  From 
the  moment  of  the  incarnation,  moreover,  four  angels 
guarded  the  Bodhisatta  and  his  mother,  to  shield  them 
from  all  harm.  The  mother  was  not  weary,  and  she 
could  perceive  the  child  in  her  womb  as  plainly  as  one 
may  see  the  thread  in  a  transparent  gem.  The  Lady 
Maha  Maya  carried  the  Bodhisatta  thus  for  ten  lunar 
months ;  at  the  end  of  that  time  she  expressed  a  wish 
to  visit  her  family  in  Devadaha ;  and  she  set  out  on  the 
journey.  On  the  way  from  Kapilavatthu  to  Devadaha 
there  is  a  pleasure-grove  of  Sal-trees  belonging  to  the 
people  of  both  cities,  and  at  the  time  of  the  queen's 
journey  it  was  filled  with  fruits  and  flowers.  Here  the 
queen  desired  to  rest,  and  she  was  carried  to  the  greatest 
of  the  Sal-trees  and  stood  beneath  it.  As  she  raised  her 
hand  to  take  hold  of  one  of  its  branches  the  pains  came 
upon  her,  and  so  standing  and  holding  the  branch  of  the 
Sal-tree  she  was  delivered.  Four  Brahma  angels  received 
the  child  in  a  golden  net,  and  showed  it  to  the  mother, 
saying  :  "  Rejoice,  O  Lady  !  a  great  son  is  born  to  thee." 
The  child  stood  upright,  and  took  seven  strides  and 
cried :  "  I  am  supreme  in  the  world.  This  is  my  last 
birth:  henceforth  there  shall  be  no  more  birth  for 
mel" 

At  one  and  the  same  time  there  came  into  being  the 
Seven  Connatal  Ones,  viz.,  the  mother  of  Rahula,  Ananda 
the  favourite  disciple,  Channa,  the  attendant,  Kanthaka, 
the  horse,  Kaludayi,  the  minister,  the  great  Bodhi  tree, 
and  the  vases  of  Treasure. 


14 


Kala  Devala 

Kala  Devala 

When  the  Bodhisatta  was  born  there  was  great  rejoicing 
in  the  heaven  of  the  Thirty-three  Gods.  At  that  time 
also  a  certain  hermit  by  name  Kala  Devala,  an  adept,  sat 
in  trance,  visiting  the  heaven  of  the  Thirty-three,  and 
seeing  the  rejoicing  he  learnt  its  cause.  Immediately 
he  returned  to  earth,  and  repaired  to  the  palace,  asking 
to  see  the  new-born  child.  The  prince  was  brought  in 
to  salute  the  great  adept,  but  he  rose  from  his  seat  and 
bowed  to  the  child,  saying :  "  I  may  not  work  my  own 
destruction";  for  assuredly  if  the  child  had  been  made 
to  bow  to  his  feet,  the  hermit's  head  would  have  split 
atwain,  so  much  had  it  been  against  the  order  of  nature. 
Now  the  adept  cast  backward  and  forward  his  vision  over 
forty  aeons,  and  perceived  that  the  child  would  become 
a  Buddha  in  his  present  birth :  but  he  saw  that  he  himself 
would  die  before  the  Great  Enlightenment  came  to  pass, 
and  being  reborn  in  the  heaven  of  No-form,  a  hundred  or 
even  a  thousand  Buddhas  might  appear  before  he  found 
the  opportunity  to  become  the  disciple  of  any;  and  seeing 
this,  he  wept.  He  sent,  however,  for  his  nephew,  then  a 
householder,  and  advised  him  to  become  a  hermit,  for  at 
the  end  of  thirty-five  years  he  would  receive  the  teach- 
ing of  the  Buddha;  and  that  same  nephew,  by  name 
Nalaka,  afterwards  entered  the  order  and  became  an 
Arahat. 

On  the  fifth  day  the  name  ceremonies  were  performed, 
and  the  child  was  call  Siddhattha  (Siddhartha).  On  this 
occasion  eight  soothsayers  were  present  amongst  the 
Brahmans,  and  of  these  seven  foresaw  that  the  child 
would  become  either  a  Universal  Monarch  or  a  Buddha, 
but  the  eighth,  by  name  Kondanna,  predicted  that  he 
would    of    a    surety    become    a    Buddha.     This    same 

15 


Buddha  <^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Kondaniia  afterwards  belonged  to  the  five  who  became 
the  Buddha's  first  disciples. 

Then  the  prince's  father  inquired:  "What  will  my  son 
see,  that  will  be  the  occasion  of  his  forsaking  the  house- 
hold life?"  "The  Four  Signs,"  was  the  answer,  "a  man 
worn  out  by  age,  a  sick  man,  a  dead  body,  and  a  hermit." 
Then  the  king  resolved  that  no  such  sights  should  ever  be 
seen  by  his  son,  for  he  did  not  wish  him  to  become  a 
Buddha,  but  desired  that  he  should  rule  the  whole  world  ; 
and  he  appointed  an  innumerable  and  magnificent  guard 
and  retinue  to  protect  his  son  from  any  such  illumi- 
nating omens,  and  to  occupy  his  mind  with  worldly 
pleasures. 

Seven  days  after  the  child's  birth  the  Lady  Maha  Maya 
died,  and  was  reborn  in  the  heaven  of  the  Thirty-three 
Gods,  and  Siddhattha  was  placed  in  the  charge  of  his 
aunt  and  stepmother  the  Matron  Gautami.  And  now  came 
to  pass  another  miracle,  on  the  occasion  of  the  Ploughing 
Festival.  For  while  the  king  was  inaugurating  the 
ploughing  with  his  own  hands,  and  the  nurses  were 
preparing  food,  the  Bodhisatta  took  his  seat  beneath 
a  Jambu-tree,  and,  crossing  his  legs  like  a  yogi,  he 
exercised  the  first  degree  of  contemplation  ;  and  though 
time  passed,  the  shadow  of  the  tree  did  not  move.  When 
the  king  beheld  that  miracle  he  bowed  to  the  child, 
and  cried:  "This,  dear  one,  is  the  second  homage  paid 
to  thee !  " 

As  the  Bodhisatta  grew  up  his  father  built  for  him  three 
palaces,  respectively  of  nine,  five,  and  seven  stories,  and 
here  he  dwelt  according  to  the  seasons.  Here  the  Bodhi- 
satta was  surrounded  by  every  luxury,  and  thousands  of 
dancing-girls  were  appointed  for  his  service  and  enter- 
tainment. Taken  to  the  teachers  of  writing  and  the  other 
i6 


The  Prince  Marries 

arts,  he  soon  surpassed  them  all,  and  he  excelled  in  all 
martial  exercises. 

The  Prince  Marries 

At  the  age  of  sixteen,  the  king  sought  for  a  wife  for 
his  son;  for  by  domestic  ties  he  hoped  to  attach  him 
still  more  to  the  worldly  life.  The  prince  had  already 
experienced  the  desire  to  become  a  hermit.  But  in  order, 
as  the  books  say,  to  conform  with  the  custom  of  former 
Bodhisattas,  he  consented  to  marry,  if  it  were  possible 
to  find  a  girl  of  perfect  manners,  wholly  truthful,  modest, 
congenial  to  his  temperament,  and  of  pure  and  honour- 
able birth,  young  and  fair,  but  not  proud  of  her  beauty, 
charitable,  contented  in  self-denial,  tender  as  a  sister 
or  a  mother,  not  desiring  music,  scents,  festivities  or 
wine,  pure  in  thought  and  word  and  deed,  the  last  to 
sleep  and  the  first  to  rise  in  the  house  where  she  should 
dwell.  Brahmans  were  sent  far  and  wide  to  seek  for 
such  a  maiden  amongst  the  Sakya  families.  At  last  the 
choice  fell  upon  Siddhattha's  cousin  Yasodhara,  the 
daughter  of  Suprabuddha  of  Kapilavatthu.  And  the 
king  devised  a  plan  to  engage  the  young  man's  heart. 
He  made  ready  a  display  of  beautiful  jewels  which 
Siddhattha  was  to  distribute  amongst  the  Sakya  maidens. 
So  it  came  to  pass :  but  when  all  the  jewels  had  been 
bestowed,  Yasodhara  came  late,  and  there  was  nothing  left 
for  her.  Thinking  that  she  was  despised,  she  asked  if 
there  was  no  gift  meant  for  her.  Siddhattha  said  there 
was  no  such  thought  in  his  mind,  and  he  sent  for  other 
rings  and  bracelets  and  gave  them  to  her.  She  said: 
"Is  it  becoming  for  me  to  receive  such  gifts."*"  and  he 
answered :  "  They  are  mine  to  give."  And  so  she 
went  her  way.     Then  Suddhodana's  spies  reported  that 

B  17 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Siddhattha  had  cast  his  eyes  only  upon  Yasodhara,  and 
had  entered  into  conversation  with  her.  A  message  was 
sent  to  Suprabuddha  asking  for  his  daughter.  The 
answer  came  that  daughters  of  the  family  were  only 
given  to  those  who  excelled  in  the  various  arts  and 
martial  exercises,  and  "could  this  be  the  case  with  one 
whose  whole  life  had  been  spent  in  the  luxury  of  a 
palace  ?  "  Suddhodana  was  grieved  because  his  son  was 
considered  to  be  indolent  and  weak.  The  Bodhisatta 
perceived  his  mood,  and  asked  its  cause,  and  being 
informed,  he  reassured  his  father,  and  advised  that  a 
contest  in  martial  exercises  should  be  proclaimed,  and  all 
the  Sakya  youths  invited.  So  it  was  done.  Then  the 
Bodhisatta  proved  himself  the  superior  of  all,  first  in 
the  arts  of  literature  and  numbers,  then  in  wrestling 
and  archery,  and  each  and  all  of  the  sixty-four  arts 
and  sciences.  When  Siddhattha  had  thus  shown  his 
prowess,  Suprabuddha  brought  his  daughter  to  be 
affianced  to  the  prince,  and  the  marriage  was  celebrated 
with  all  magnificence.  Amongst  the  defeated  Sakyas 
were  two  cousins  of  the  Buddha,  the  one  Ananda, 
who  afterwards  became  the  favourite  disciple,  the 
other  Devadatta,  whose  growing  envy  and  jealousy 
made  him  the  life-long  enemy  of  the  victor. 

T/ie  Four  Signs 

The  Bodhisatta  is  never  entirely  forgetful  of  his  high 
calling.  Yet  it  is  needful  that  he  should  be  reminded  of 
the  approaching  hour ;  and  to  this  end  the  cosmic  Buddhas 
made  audible  to  Siddhattha,  even  as  he  sat  and  listened  to 
the  singing  of  the  dancing-girls,  the  message — "Recollect 
thy  vow,  to  save  all  living  things  :  the  time  is  at  hand  :  this 
alone  is  the  purpose  of  thy  birth."  And  thus  as  the 
i8 


The  Four  Signs 

Bodhisatta  sat  in  his  beautiful  palaces  day  after  day 
surrounded  by  all  the  physical  and  intellectual  pleasures 
that  could  be  devised  by  love  or  art,  he  felt  an  ever  more 
insistent  call  to  the  fulfilment  of  his  spiritual  destiny. 
And  now  were  to  be  revealed  to  him  the  Four  Signs  which 
were  to  be  the  immediate  cause  of  the  Great  Renunciation. 
The  Bodhisatta  desired  one  day  to  visit  the  royal  pleasure- 
gardens.  His  father  appointed  a  day,  and  gave  command 
that  the  city  should  be  swept  and  garnished,  and  that  every 
inauspicious  sight  should  be  removed,  and  none  allowed 
to  appear  save  those  who  were  young  and  fair.  The  day 
came,  and  the  prince  drove  forth  with  the  charioteer 
Channa.  But  the  Devas  ^  are  not  to  be  diverted  from  their 
ends :  and  a  certain  one  assumed  the  form  of  an  old  and 
decrepit  man,  and  stood  in  the  midst  of  the  street.  *'  What 
kind  of  a  man  is  this?"  said  the  Prince,  and  Channa 
replied,  "  Sire,  it  is  an  aged  man,  bowed  down  by  years." 
"Are  all  men  then,"  said  the  prince,  "or  this  man  only, 
subject  to  age?"  The  charioteer  could  but  answer  that 
youth  must  yield  to  age  in  every  living  being.  "  Shame, 
then,  on  life  1 "  said  the  prince,  "  since  the  decay  of  every 
living  thing  is  notorious!"  and  he  turned  to  his  palace  in 
sadness.  When  all  that  had  taken  place  was  reported  to 
the  king,  he  exclaimed:  "This  is  my  ruin!"  and  he 
devised  more  and  more  amusements,  music  and  plays 
calculated  to  divert  Siddhattha's  mind  from  the  thought 
of  leaving  the  world. 

Again  the  prince  drove  out  to  visit  the  pleasure-gardens 
of  Kapilavatthu :  and  on  the  way  they  met  a  sick  man,  thin 
and  weak  and  scorched  by  fever.  When  the  meaning  of 
this   spectacle  was   made    clear    by  the  charioteer,    the 

^  Devas,  the  Olympian  deities,  headed  by  Sakka,  who  dwell  in  the 
Heaven  of  the  Thirty-three  :  spiritual  powers  generally,  '  gods.' 

19 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Bodhisatta  exclaimed  again:  "If  health  be  frail  as  the 
substance  of  a  dream,  who  then  can  take  delight  in  joy  and 
pleasure  ?  "  And  the  car  was  turned,  and  he  returned  to 
the  palace. 

A  third  time  the  prince  went  forth,  and  now  they  met  a 
corpse  followed  by  mourners  weeping  and  tearing  their 
hair.  "  Why  does  this  man  lie  on  a  bier,"  said  the  prince, 
"  and  why  do  they  weep  and  beat  their  breasts  ?  "  "  Sire," 
said  the  charioteer,  "he  is  dead,  and  may  never  more  see 
his  father  or  mother,  children  or  home :  he  has  departed  to 
another  world."  "  Woe  then  to  such  youth  as  is  destroyed 
by  age,"  exclaimed  the  prince,  "and  woe  to  the  health 
that  is  destroyed  by  innumerable  maladies !  Woe  to  the 
life  so  soon  ended  !  Would  that  sickness,  age,  and  death 
might  be  for  ever  bound  !  Turn  back  again,  that  I  may 
seek  a  way  of  deliverance." 

When  the  Bodhisatta  drove  forth  for  the  last  time,  he 
met  a  hermit,  a  mendicant  friar.  This  Bhikkhu  was  self- 
possessed,  serene,  dignified,  self-controlled,  with  downcast 
eyes,  dressed  in  the  garb  of  a  religious  and  carrying  a 
beggar's  bowl.  "  Who  is  this  man  of  so  calm  a  temper?  " 
said  the  prince,  "clothed  in  russet  garments,  and  of  such 
dignified  demeanour?"  "Sire,"  said  the  charioteer,  "  He 
is  a  Bhikkhu,  a  religious,  who  has  abandoned  all  longings 
and  leads  a  life  of  austerity,  he  lives  without  passion  or 
envy,  and  begs  his  daily  food."  The  Bodhisatta  answered 
"That  is  well  done,  and  makes  me  eager  for  the  same 
course  of  life :  to  become  religious  has  ever  been  praised  by 
the  wise,  and  this  shall  be  my  refuge  and  the  refuge  of 
others  and  shall  yield  the  fruit  of  life,  and  immortality." 
Again  the  Bodhisatta  returned  to  his  palace. 
When  all  these  things  had  been  reported  to  Suddhodana, 
he  surrounded  the  prince's  pleasure-palace  by  triple  walls 
20 


The  Great  Renunciation 

and  redoubled  the  guards,  and  he  commanded  the  women 
of  the  palace  to  exercise  all  their  charms,  to  divert  the 
prince's  thoughts  by  music  and  pleasure :  and  it  was  done 
accordingly.  And  now  Yasodhara  was  troubled  by 
portentous  dreams :  she  dreamed  that  the  land  was 
devastated  by  storms,  she  saw  herself  naked  and  mutilated, 
her  beautiful  jewels  broken,  the  sun  the  moon  and  the  stars 
fell  from  the  sky  and  Mount  Meru  sank  into  the  great 
deep.  When  she  related  these  dreams  to  the  Bodhisatta, 
he  replied  in  gentle  tones  :  "  You  need  not  fear.  It  is  to  the 
good  and  the  worthy  alone  that  such  dreams  come,  never 
to  the  base.  Rejoice !  for  the  purport  of  all  these  dreams 
is  that  the  bond  of  mortality  shall  be  loosed,  the  veils  of 
ignorance  shall  be  rent  asunder,  for  I  have  completely 
fulfilled  the  way  of  wisdom,  and  every  one  that  has  faith 
in  me  shall  be  saved  from  the  three  evils,  without 
exception." 

The  Great  Renunciation 

The  Bodhisatta  reflected  that  he  ought  not  to  go  forth  as 
a  Wanderer  without  giving  notice  to  his  father;  and  there- 
fore he  sought  the  king  by  night,  and  said:  "Sire,  the 
time  is  at  hand  for  my  going  forth,  do  not  hinder  me,  but 
permit  me  to  depart."  The  king's  eyes  were  charged  with 
tears,  and  he  answered :  "  What  is  there  needful  to  change 
thy  purpose  ?  Tell  me  whatever  thou  desirest  and  it  shall 
be  thine,  be  it  myself,  the  palace,  or  the  kingdom."  The 
Bodhisatta  replied,  "  Sire,  I  desire  four  things,  pray  thee 
grant  them :  the  first,  to  remain  for  ever  in  possession  of 
the  fresh  colour  of  youth ;  the  second,  that  sickness  may 
never  attack  me ;  the  third,  that  my  life  may  have  no 
term  ;  the  last,  that  I  may  not  be  subject  to  decay."  When 
the  king  heard  these  words,  he  was  overcome  by  grief,  for 

21 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

the  prince  desired  what  it  was  not  possible  for  a  man  to 
bestow.  Then  the  Bodhisatta  continued:  "If  then  I  cannot 
avoid  old  age,  sickness,  death  and  decay,  grant  at  least  this 
one  thing,  that  when  I  leave  this  world  I  may  nevermore  be 
subject  to  rebirth."  And  when  the  king  could  give  no 
better  answer,  he  granted  his  son's  desire.  But  the  next 
day  he  established  an  additional  guard  of  five  hundred 
young  men  of  the  Sakyas  at  each  of  the  four  gates  of  the 
palace,  while  the  Matron  GautamI  established  an  amazon 
guard  within ;  for  the  king  would  not  allow  his  son  to 
depart  with  a  free  will. 

At  the  same  time  the  captains  of  the  Yakkhas^  assembled 
together,  and  they  said  "To-day,  my  friends,  the 
Bodhisatta  is  to  go  forth  ;  hasten  to  do  him  service." 
The  Four  Great  Kings^  commanded  the  Yakkhas  to  bear 
up  the  feet  of  the  prince's  horse.  The  Thirty-three  Devas 
likewise  assembled,  and  Sakka  ordered  their  services,  so 
that  one  should  cast  a  heavy  sleep  on  all  the  men  and 
women  and  young  men  and  maidens  of  Kapilavatthu,  and 
another  should  silence  the  noise  of  the  elephants,  horses, 
camels,  bulls  and  other  beasts ;  and  others  constituted 
themselves  an  escort,  to  cast  down  a  rain  of  flowers  and 
perfume  the  air.  Sakka  himself  announced  that  he  would 
open  the  gates  and  show  the  way. 

On  the  morning  of  the  day  of  the  going  forth,  when  the 
Bodhisatta  was  being  attired,  a  message  was  brought  to 
him  that  Yasodhara  had  borne  him  a  son.  He  did  not 
rejoice,  but  he  said:  "A  bond  has  come  into  being,  a 
hindrance  for  me."  And  the  child  received  the  name  of 
Rahula  or  'Hindrance'  accordingly.  The  same  day  the 
Bodhisatta  drove  again  in  the  city,  and  a  certain  noble 

^  Yakkhas,  nature  spirits. 

^  The  Four  Kings,  Guardians  of  the  Four  Quarters. 

22 


The  Great  Renunciation 

virgin,  by  name  Kisa  GotamI,  stood  on  the  roof  of  her 
palace  and  beheld  the  beauty  and  majesty  of  the  future 
Buddha  as  he  passed  by,  and  she  made  a  song : 

Blessed  indeed  is  the  mother^  blessed  indeed  the 

father^ 
Blessed  indeed  is  the  wi/e^  whose  is  a  lord  so 

glorious ! 

On  hearing  this  the  Bodhisatta  thought:  "She  does  but 
say  that  the  heart  of  a  mother,  or  a  father,  or  a  wife  is 
gladdened  by  such  a  sight.  But  by  what  can  every  heart 
attain  to  lasting  happiness  and  peace  ?  "  The  answer  arose 
in  his  mind:  "When  the  fire  of  lust  is  extinguished,  then 
there  is  peace ;  and  when  the  fires  of  resentment  and 
glamour  are  dead,  then  there  is  peace.  Sweet  is  the  lesson 
this  singer  has  taught  me,  for  it  is  the  Nibbana  of  peace 
that  I  have  sought.  This  day  I  shall  relinquish  the 
household  life,  nothing  will  I  seek  but  Nibbana  itself." 
And  taking  from  his  neck  the  string  of  pearls  he  sent  it  as 
a  teacher's  fee  to  Kisa  GotamI.  But  she  thought  that  the 
prince  loved  her,  and  sent  her  a  gift  because  of  his  love. 
That  night  the  singers  and  the  dancing-girls  exerted 
themselves  to  please  the  prince :  fair  as  the  nymphs  of 
heaven,  they  danced  and  sang  and  played.  But  the 
Bodhisatta,  his  heart  being  estranged  from  sin,  took  no 
pleasure  in  the  entertainment,  and  fell  asleep.  And  the 
women  seeing  that  he  slept,  laid  aside  their  instruments 
and  fell  asleep  likewise.  And  when  the  lamps  that  were 
fed  with  scented  oil  were  on  the  point  of  dying,  the 
Bodhisatta  awoke,  and  he  saw  the  girls  that  had  seemed 
so  fair,  in  all  the  disarray  of  slumber.  And  the  king's 
son,  seeing  them  thus  dishevelled  and  disarrayed,  breathing 
heavily,  yawning  and   sprawling  in  unseemly  attitudes, 

23 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

was  moved  to  scorn.  "  Such  is  the  true  nature  of  women," 
he  thought,  "but  a  man  is  deceived  by  dress  and  jewels  and 
is  dehided  by  a  woman's  beauties.  If  a  man  would  but  con- 
sider the  natural  state  of  women  and  the  change  that  comes 
upon  them  in  sleep,  assuredly  he  would  not  cherish  his  folly ; 
but  he  is  smitten  from  a  right  will,  and  so  succumbs  to 
passion."  And  therewith  he  resolved  to  accomplish  the 
Great  Renunciation  that  very  night,  and  at  that  very  time, 
for  it  seemed  to  him  that  every  mode  of  existence  on  earth 
or  in  heaven  most  resembled  a  delay  in  a  house  already 
become  the  prey  of  devouring  flames ;  and  his  mind  was 
irresistibly  directed  towards  the  state  of  those  who  have 
renounced  the  world. 

The  Bodhisatta  therefore  rose  from  his  couch  and  called 
for  Channa;  and  the  charioteer,  who  was  sleeping  with 
his  head  on  the  threshold,  rose  and  said:  "Sire,  I  am 
here."  Then  the  Bodhisatta  said :  "  I  am  resolved  to 
accomplish  the  Great  Renunciation  to-day;  saddle  my 
horse."  And  Channa  went  out  to  the  stable  and  saddled 
Kanthaka:  and  the  horse  knew  what  was  the  reason  of 
his  being  saddled,  and  neighed  for  joy,  so  that  the  whole 
city  would  have  been  aroused,  had  it  not  been  that  the 
Devas  subdued  the  sound,  so  that  no  one  heard  it.  Now 
while  Channa  was  away  in  the  stable  yard,  the  Bodhisatta 
thought:  "I  will  take  one  look  at  my  son,"  and  he  went 
to  the  door  of  Yasodhara's  chamber.  The  Mother  of 
Rahula  was  asleep  on  a  bed  strewn  thick  with  jasmine 
flowers,  and  her  hand  was  resting  on  her  son's  head.  The 
Bodhisatta  stopped  with  his  foot  upon  the  threshold,  for 
he  thought :  "  If  I  lift  her  hand  to  take  up  my  son,  she 
will  awake,  and  my  departure  will  be  hindered.  I  will 
return  and  see  him  after  I  have  attained  enlightenment." 
Then  he  went  forth,  and  seeing  the  horse  ready  saddled, 

24 


The  Great  Renunciation 

he  said,  "Good  Kanthaka,  do  thou  save  me  this  night, 
to  the  end  that  I  may  become  a  Buddha  by  thy  help  and 
may  save  the  worlds  of  men  and  gods."  Kanthaka 
neighed  again,  but  the  sound  of  his  voice  was  heard  by 
none. 

So  the  Bodhisatta  rode  forth,  followed  by  Channa: 
the  Yakkhas  bore  up  the  feet  of  Kanthaka  so  that  they 
made  no  sound,  and  when  they  came  to  the  guarded  gates 
the  angel  standing  thereby  caused  them  to  open  silently. 
At  that  moment  Mara  the  Fiend  appeared  in  the  air,  and 
tempted  the  Bodhisatta,  exclaiming :  "  Go  not  forth,  my 
lord!  for  within  seven  days  from  this  the  Wheel  of 
Sovereignty  will  appear,  and  will  make  you  ruler  of  the 
four  continents  and  the  myriad  islands.  Go  not  forth  1 " 
The  Bodhisatta  replied  :  "  Mara !  well  I  know  that  this 
is  sooth.  But  I  do  not  seek  the  sovereignty  of  the  world. 
I  would  become  a  Buddha,  to  make  tens  of  thousands  of 
worlds  rejoice."  And  so  the  tempter  left  him,  but 
resolved  to  follow  him  ever  like  a  shadow,  to  lay  hold  of 
the  occasion,  if  ever  a  thought  of  anger  or  desire  should 
arise  in  the  Bodhisatta's  heart.  It  was  on  the  full-moon 
day  of  Asadha  when  the  prince  departed  from  the  city. 
His  progress  was  accompanied  by  pomp  and  glory,  for 
the  gods  and  angels  bore  myriads  of  torches  before  and 
behind  him,  and  a  rain  of  beautiful  flowers  was  cast  down 
from  the  heaven  of  Indra,  so  that  the  very  flanks  of 
Kanthaka  were  covered.  In  this  way  the  Bodhisatta 
advanced  a  great  distance,  until  they  reached  and  passed 
over  the  river  Anoma.  When  they  were  come  to  the 
other  side,  the  Bodhisatta  alighted  upon  the  sandy  shore 
and  said  to  Channa :  '•''  Good  Channa,  the  time  has  come 
when  thou  must  return,  and  take  with  thee  all  my  jewels 
together  with  Kanthaka,  for  I  am  about   to   become   a 

25 


Buddha  &P  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

hermit  and  a  wanderer  in  these  forests.  Grieve  not  for 
me,  but  mourn  for  those  who  stay  behind,  bound  by- 
longings  of  which  the  fruit  is  sorrow.  It  is  my  resolve 
to  seek  the  highest  good  this  very  day,  for  what  con- 
fidence have  we  in  life  when  death  is  ever  at  hand  ?  And 
do  you  comfort  the  king,  and  so  speak  with  him  that  he 
may  not  even  remember  me,  for  where  affection  is  lost, 
there  is  no  sorrow."  But  Channa  protested,  and  prayed 
the  Bodhisatta  to  take  pity  upon  the  king,  and  upon 
Yasodhara  and  on  the  city  of  Kapilavatthu.  But  again  the 
Bodhisatta  answered  :  "  Even  were  I  to  return  to  my  kin- 
dred by  reason  of  affection,  yet  we  should  be  divided  in  the 
end  by  death.  The  meeting  and  parting  of  living  things  is 
as  when  the  clouds  having  come  together  drift  apart  again, 
or  as  when  the  leaves  are  parted  from  the  trees.  There 
is  nothing  we  may  call  our  own  in  a  union  that  is  nothing 
but  a  dream.  Therefore,  since  it  is  so,  go,  and  grieve 
not,  and  say  to  the  people  of  Kapilavatthu :  '  Either  he 
will  soon  return,  the  conqueror  of  age  and  death,  or  he 
himself  will  fail  and  perish.' "  Then  Channa  too  would 
have  become  a  hermit:  but  the  Bodhisatta  answered 
again :  "  If  your  love  is  so  great,  yet  go,  deliver  the 
message,  and  return." 

Then  the  Bodhisatta  took  the  sharp  sword  that  Channa 
bore  and  severed  with  it  his  long  locks  and  jewelled  crest 
and  cast  them  into  the  waters :  and  at  the  moment  when 
he  felt  the  need  of  a  hermit's  dress,  there  appeared  an 
angel  in  the  guise  of  a  hunter  clad  in  the  russet  robes  of 
a  forest-sage  and  he,  receiving  the  white  muslin  garments 
of  the  prince,  rendered  to  him  the  dark  red  robes  in  return, 
and  so  departed. 

Now  Kanthaka  attended  to  all  that  had  been  said,  and  he 
licked  the  Bodhisatta's  feet;  and  the  prince  spoke  to 
26 


The  Search  for  the  Way  of  Escape 

him  as  to  a  friend,  and  said :  "  Grieve  not,  O  Kanthaka, 
for  thy  perfect  equine  nature  has  been  proved — bear  with 
it,  and  soon  thy  pain  shall  bear  its  fruit."  But  Kanthaka, 
thinking :  "  From  this  day  forth  I  shall  never  see  my 
master  more,"  went  out  of  their  sight,  and  there  died  of  a 
broken  heart  and  was  reborn  in  the  Heaven  of  the  Thirty- 
three.  Then  Channa's  grief  was  doubled;  and  torn  by 
the  second  sorrow  of  the  death  of  Kanthaka,  he  returned 
to  the  city  weeping  and  wailing,  and  the  Bodhisatta  was 
left  alone. 

The  Search  for  The  Way  of  Escape 
The  Bodhisatta  remained  for  a  week  in  the  Mango-grove 
of  Anupiya,  and  thereafter  he  proceeded  to  Rajagaha,  the 
chief  town  of  Magadha.  He  begged  his  food  from  door 
to  door,  and  the  beauty  of  his  person  cast  the  whole  city 
into  commotion.  When  this  was  made  known  to  the 
king  Bimbisara,  he  went  to  the  place  where  the  Bodhi- 
satta was  sitting,  and  offered  to  bestow  upon  him  the 
whole  kingdom :  but  again  the  Bodhisatta  refused  the 
royal  throne,  for  he  had  already  abandoned  all  in  the  hope 
of  attaining  enlightenment,  and  did  not  desire  a  worldly 
empire.  But  he  granted  the  king's  request  that  when  he 
had  found  the  way,  he  would  preach  it  first  in  that  same 
kino-dom. 

It  is  said  that  when  the  Bodhisatta  entered  a  hermitage 
for  the  first  time  (and  this  was  before  he  proceeded  to 
Rajagaha)  he  found  the  sages  practising  many  and  strange 
penances,  and  he  inquired  their  meaning,  and  what  was  the 
purpose  that  each  endeavoured  to  achieve  and  received 
the  answer — "  By  such  penances  endured  for  a  time, 
by  the  higher  they  attain  heaven,  and  by  the  lower, 
favourable  fruit  in  the  world  of  men :  by  pain  they  come 

27 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

at  last   to  happiness,  for  pain,  they  say,  is  the  root  of 
merit."     But  to  him  it  seemed  that  here  there  was  no  way 
of  escape — here  too,  men  endured  misery  for  the  sake  of 
happiness,  and  that  happiness  itself,  rightly  understood, 
consisted  in  pain,  for  it  must  ever  be  subject  to  mortality 
and  to  rebirth.     "  It  is  not  the  effort  itself  which  I  blame," 
he  said,  "  which  casts  aside  the  base  and  follows  a  higher 
path  of  its  own :  but  the  wise  in  sooth,  by  all  this  heavy 
toil,  ought  to  attain  to  the  state  where  nothing  ever  needs 
to  be  done  again.     And  since  it  is  the  mind  that  controls 
the  body,  it  is  thought  alone  that  should  be  restrained. 
Neither  purity  of  food  nor  the  waters  of  a  sacred  river  can 
cleanse  the  heart :  water  is  but  water,  but  the  true  place  of 
pilgrimage  is  the  virtue  of  the  virtuous  man." 
And  now,  rejecting  with  courtesy  the  king's  offers,  the 
Bodhisatta  made  his  way  to  the  hermitage  of  the  renowned 
sage  Alara  Kalama  and  became  his  disciple,_  learning  the 
successive  degrees  of  ecstatic  meditation.     Alara  taught, 
it  is  clear,  the  doctrine  of  the  Atman,  saying  that  the  sage 
who  is  versed  in  the  Supreme  Self,  "  having  abolished 
himself  by  himself,  sees  that  nought  exists  and  is  called 
a  Nihilist :  then,  like  a  bird  from  its  cage,  the  soul  escaping 
from  the  body,  is  declared  to  be  set  free:  this  is  that 
supreme  Brahman,  constant,  eternal,  and  without  distinctive 
signs,   which   the  wise   who    know  reality  declare  to  be 
liberation."     But  Gautama  (and  it  is  by  this  name  that 
the  books  now  begin  to  speak  of  the  Bodhisatta)  ignores 
the  phrase  "without  distinctive  signs,"  and  with  verbal 
justification   quarrels    with    the   animistic    and    dualistic 
terminology  of  soul  and  body :  a  liberated  soul,  he  argued, 
is  still  a  soul,  and  whatever  the  condition  it  attains,  must 
be   subject  to   rebirth,   "and   since   each   successive   re- 
nunciation is  held  to  be  still  accompanied  by  qualities,  I 
28 


The  Search  for  the  Way  of  Escape 

maintain  that  the  absolute  attainment  of  our  end  is  only 
to  be  found  in  the  abandonment  of  everything."  ^ 
And  now  leaving  the  hermitages  of  Rajagaha  the  Bodhi- 
satta,  seeking  something  beyond,  repaired  to  a  forest  near 
to  the  village  of  Uruvela  and  there  abode  on  the  pure  bank 
of  the  Nairanjana.  There  five  wanderers,  begging  hermits, 
came  to  him,  for  they  were  persuaded  that  ere  long  he  would 
attain  enlightenment :  and  the  leader  of  these  was  Kondaniia, 
the  erstwhile  Brahman  soothsayer  who  had  prophesied  at 
the  festival  of  the  Bodhisatta's  name  day.  And  now 
thinking:  "This  may  be  the  means  to  conquer  birth  and 
death,"  Gautama  for  six  years  practised  there  an  austere 
rule  of  fasting  and  of  mortification,  so  that  his  glorious 
body  wasted  away  to  skin  and  bone.  He  brought  himself 
to  feed  on  a  single  sesamum  seed  or  a  grain  of  rice, 
until  one  day,  as  he  paced  to  and  fro,  he  was  overcome  by 
a  severe  pain,  and  fainted  and  fell.  Then  certain  of  the 
Devas  exclaimed  "  Gautama  is  dead  !  "  and  some  reported 
it  to  Suddhodana  the  king  at  Kapilavatthu.  But  he 
replied  :  "  I  may  not  believe  it.  Never  would  my  son  die 
without  attaining  enlightenment."  For  he  did  not  forget 
the  miracle  at  the  foot  of  the  Jambu-tree,  nor  the  day  when 
the  great  sage  Kala  Devala  had  been  compelled  to  offer 
homage  to  the  child.  And  the  Bodhisatta  recovered, 
and  stood  up ;  and  again  the  gods  reported  it  to  the  king. 
Now  the  fame  of  the  Bodhisatta's  exceeding  penances 
became  spread  abroad,  as  the  sound  of  a  great  bell  is 

^  We  recognize  here  the  critical  moment  where  Buddhist  and  Brahman 
thought  part  company  on  the  question  of  the  Atman.  Whether  Alara 
failed  to  emphasize  the  negative  aspect  of  the  doctrine  of  the  Brahman,  or 
Gautama  (who  is  represented  as  so  far  entirely  innocent  of  Brahmanical 
philosophy)  failed  to  distinguish  the  neuter  Brahman  from  the  god 
Brahma,  we  cannot  tell.  The  question  is  discussed  at  greater  length 
in  Part  III,  Chapter  IV.  (p.  198  f.) 

29 


Buddha  <^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

heard  in  the  sky.  But  he  perceived  that  mortification 
was  not  the  road  to  enHghtenment  and  to  liberation — 
"  that  was  the  true  way  that  I  found  beneath  the  Jambu- 
tree,  and  it  cannot  be  attained  by  one  who  has  lost  his 
strength."  And  so  again  the  Great  Being  resolved  to 
beg  his  food  in  towns  and  villages,  that  his  health  and 
strength  might  be  restored.  This  was  in  the  thirtieth 
year  of  the  life  of  Gautama.  But  the  Five  Disciples 
reflected  that  Gautama  had  not  been  able  to  attain  en- 
lightenment even  by  six  years  of  the  most  severe  austerities, 
"  and  how  can  he  do  so  now,  when  he  goes  and  begs  in  the 
villages  and  eats  of  ordinary  food?" — and  they  departed 
from  him  and  went  to  the  suburb  of  Benares  called 
Isipatana. 

The  Supreme  Enlightenment 

Now  durinof  the  time  that  Gautama  had  been  dwelling  in 
the  forest  near  by  Uruvela,  the  daughter  of  the  village 
headman,  by  name  Sujata,  had  been  accustomed  to  make  a 
daily  offering  of  food  to  eight  hundred  Brahmans,  making 
the  prayer — "  May  the  Bodhisatta  at  length,  receive  an 
offering  of  food  from  me,  attain  enlightenment,  and  become 
a  Buddha  !  "  And  now  that  the  time  had  come  when  he 
desired  to  receive  nourishing  food,  a  Deva  appeared  in 
the  night  to  Sujata  and  announced  that  the  Bodhisatta 
had  put  aside  his  austerities  and  desired  to  partake  of 
good  and  nourishing  food,  "and  now  shall  your  prayer  be 
accomplished."  Then  Sujata  with  all  speed  arose  early 
and  went  to  her  father's  herd.  Now  for  a  long  time  she 
had  been  accustomed  to  take  the  milk  of  a  thousand  cows 
and  to  feed  therewith  five  hundred,  and  again  with  their 
milk  to  feed  two  hundred  and  fifty,  and  so  on  until  eight 
only  were  fed  with  the  milk  of  the  rest,  and  this  she  called 
30 


Ill 

SUJATA  AND  THE  BOWL  OF  MILK-RICE 

Nanda  Lal  Bose 

Page  30 


The  Supreme  Enlightenment 

"working  the  milk  in  and  in."  It  was  the  full-moon  day 
of  the  month  of  May  when  she  received  the  message  of  the 
gods,  and  rose  early,  and  milked  the  eight  cows,  and  took 
the  milk  and  boiled  it  in  new  pans,  and  prepared  milk-rice. 
At  the  same  time  she  sent  her  maid  Punna  to  the  foot  of 
the  great  tree  where  she  had  been  wont  to  lay  her  daily 
offerings.  Now  the  Bodhisatta,  knowing  that  he  would 
that  day  attain  Supreme  Enlightenment,  was  sitting  at  the 
foot  of  the  tree,  awaiting  the  hour  for  going  forth  to  beg 
his  food;  and  such  was  his  glory  that  all  the  region  of  the 
East  was  lit  up.  The  girl  thought  that  it  was  the  spirit 
of  the  tree  who  would  deign  to  receive  the  offering  with 
his  own  hands.  When  she  returned  to  Sujata  and  reported 
this,  Sujata  embraced  her  and  bestowed  on  her  the  jewels 
of  a  daughter,  and  exclaimed,  "  Henceforth  thou  shalt  be 
to  me  in  the  place  of  an  elder  daughter  1 "  And  sending 
for  a  goldfen  vessel  she  put  the  well-cooked  food  therein, 
and  covered  it  with  a  pure  white  cloth,  and  bore  it  with 
dignity  to  the  foot  of  the  great  Nigrodha-tree;  and  there 
she  too  saw  the  Bodhisatta,  and  believed  him  to  be  the 
spirit  of  the  tree.  Sujata  approached  him,  and  placed  the 
vessel  in  his  hand,  and  she  met  his  gaze  and  said  :  "  My 
lord,  accept  what  I  have  offered  thee,"  and  she  added 
"  May  there  arise  to  thee  as  much  of  joy  as  has  come  to 
me!  "  and  so  she  departed. 

The  Bodhisatta  took  the  golden  bowl,  and  went  down  to 
the  bank  of  the  river  and  bathed,  and  then  dressing  himself 
in  the  garb  of  an  Arahat,  he  again  took  his  seat,  with  his 
face  towards  the  East.  He  divided  the  rice  into  forty- 
nine  portions,  and  this  food  sufficed  for  his  nourishment 
during  the  forty-nine  days  following  the  Enlightenment. 
When  he  had  finished  eating  the  milk  rice,  he  took  the 
golden  vessel  and  cast  it  into  the  stream,  saying  *'  If  I  am 

31 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

able  to  attain  Enlightenment  to-day,  let  this  pot  go  up 
stream,  but  if  not,  may  it  go  down  stream."  And  he  threw 
it  into  the  water,  and  it  went  swiftly  up  the  river  until  it 
reached  the  whirlpool  of  the  Black  Snake  King,  and  there 
it  sank. 

The  Bodhisatta  spent  the  heat  of  the  day  in  a  grove  of 
Sal-trees  beside  the  stream.  But  in  the  evening  he  made 
his  way  to  the  foot  of  the  tree  of  wisdom,  and  there, 
making  the  resolution :  ''Though  my  skin,  my  nerves  and 
my  bones  should  waste  away  and  my  life-blood  dry,  I  will 
not  leave  this  seat  until  I  have  attained  Supreme  Enlighten- 
ment," he  took  his  seat  with  his  face  towards  the  East. 
At  this  moment  Mara  the  Fiend  became  aware  that  the 
Bodhisatta  had  taken  his  seat  with  a  view  to  attaining 
Perfect  Enlightenment;  and  thereupon,  summoning  the 
hosts  of  the  demons,  and  mounting  his  elephant  of  war, 
he  advanced  towards  the  Tree  of  Wisdom.  And  there 
stood  Maha  Brahma  holding  above  the  Bodhisatta  a 
white  canopy  of  state,  and  Sakka,  blowing  the  great 
trumpet,  and  with  them  were  all  the  companies  of  gods 
and  angels.  But  so  terrible  was  the  array  of  Mara  that 
there  was  not  one  of  all  this  host  of  the  Devas  that  dared 
to  remain  to  face  him.  The  Great  Being  was  left  alone. 
First  of  all,  however,  Mara  assumed  the  form  of  a 
messenger,  with  disordered  garments,  and  panting  in  haste, 
bearing  a  letter  from  the  Sakya  princes.  And  in  the  letter 
it  was  written  that  Devadatta  had  usurped  the  kingdom 
of  Kapilavatthu  and  entered  the  Bodhisatta's  palace,  taken 
his  goods  and  his  wife,  and  cast  Suddhodana  into  prison 
and  they  prayed  him  to  return  to  restore  peace  and  order. 
But  the  Bodhisatta  reflected  lust  it  was  that  had  caused 
Devadatta  thus  to  misuse  the  women,  malice  had  made 
him  imprison  Suddhodana,  while  the  Sakyas  neutralized 
32 


The  Supreme  Enlightenment 

by  cowardice  failed  to  defend  their  King:  and  so  reflecting 
on  the  folly  and  weakness  of  the  natural  heart,  his  own 
resolve  to  attain  a  higher  and  better  state  was  strengthened 
and  confirmed.^ 

Failing  in  this  device,  Mara  now  advanced  to  the  assault 
with  all  his  hosts,  striving  to  overcome  the  Bodhisatta 
first  by  a  terrible  whirlwind,  then  by  a  storm  of  rain,  causing 
a  mighty  flood  :  but  the  hem  of  the  Bodhisatta's  robe  was 
not  stirred,  nor  did  a  single  drop  of  water  reach  him.  Then 
Mara  cast  down  upon  him  showers  of  rocks,  and  a  storm 
of  deadly  and  poisoned  weapons,  burning  ashes  and  coals, 
and  a  storm  of  scorching  sand  and  flaming  mud ;  but  all 
these  missiles  only  fell  at  the  Bodhisatta's  feet  as  a  rain 
of  heavenly  flowers,  or  hung  in  the  air  like  a  canopy  above 
his  head.  Nor  could  he  be  moved  by  an  onset  of  thick 
and  fourfold  darkness.  Then  findine  all  these  means  to 
fail,  he  addressed  the  Bodhisatta  and  said :  "  Arise, 
Siddhattha,  from  that  seat,  for  it  is  not  thine,  but  mine!" 
The  Bodhisatta  replied,  "Mara!  thou  hast  not  accom- 
plished the  Ten  Perfections,  nor  even  the  minor  virtues. 
Thou  hast  not  sought  for  knowledge,  nor  for  the  salvation 
of  the  world.  The  seat  is  mine."  Then  Mara  was  enraofed, 
and  cast  at  the  Bodhisatta  his  Sceptre-javelin,  which 
cleaves  asunder  a  pillar  of  solid  rock  like  a  tender  shoot 
of  cane:  and  all  the  demon  hosts  hurled  masses  of  rock. 
But  the  javelin  hung  in  the  air  like  a  canopy,  and  the 
masses  of  rock  fell  down  as  garlands  of  flowers. 
Then  the  Great  Being  said  to  Mara :  "  Mara,  who  is  the 
witness  that  thou  hast  given  alms?"  Mara  stretched  forth 
his  hand,  and  a  shout  arose  from  the  demon  hosts,  of  a 

*  Cf.,  "  The  sages  of  old  first  got  Tao  for  themselves,  and  then  got  it  for 
others.  Before  you  possess  this  yourself,  what  leisure  have  you  to 
attend  to  the  doings  of  wicked  men  ?  " — Chuang  Tzu.    See  also  p.  1 26. 

c  33 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

thousand  voices  crying:  "I  am  his  witness ! "     Then  the 
Fiend  addressed   the  Bodhisatta,  and  enquired:  "Sidd- 
hattha!  who  is  the  witness  that  thou  has  given  alms?" 
and  the  Great  Being  answered :  "  Mara  thou  hast  many 
and  living  witnesses  that  thou  hast  given  alms,  and  no 
such  witnesses  have  I.     But  apart  from  the  alms  I  have 
given  in  other  births,   I   call  upon  this   solid   earth   to 
witness  to  my  supernatural  generosity  when  I  was  born 
as  Vessantara."     And  drawingr  his  rigrht  hand  from  his 
robe,  he  stretched  it  forth  to  touch  the  earth,  and  said :  "  Do 
you  or  do  you  not  witness  to  my  supernatural  generosity 
when  I  was  born  as  Vessantara?"     And  the  great  Earth 
replied  with  a  voice  of  thunder:  "I  am  witness  of  that." 
And  thereat  the  great  elephant  of  Mara  bowed  down  in 
adoration,  and  the  demon  hosts  fled  far  away  in  dread. 
Then  Mara  was  abashed.     But  he  did  not  withdraw,  for 
he  hoped  to  accomplish  by  another  means  what  he  could 
not  effect  by  force:   he  summoned  his  three  daughters, 
Tanha,    Rati,    and    Raga,   and   they   danced   before   the 
Bodhisatta  like  the  swaying  branches  of  a  young  leafy 
tree,  using  all  the  arts  of  seduction  known  to  beautiful 
women.     Again  they  offered  him  the  lordship  of  the  earth, 
and  the  companionship  of  beautiful  girls :  they  appealed 
to  him  with  songs  of  the  season  of  spring,  and  exhibited 
their   supernatural   beauty  and   grace.     But   the    Bodhi- 
satta's  heart  was  not  in  the  least  moved,  and  he  answered  : 
Pleasure  is  brief  as  a  fiash  of  lightning 
Or  like  an  Anticvm  sJiozuer^  only  for  a  monienl.  .  . 
Why  should  I  then  covet  the  pleasures  yon  speak  of? 
I  see  your  bodies  are  fill  of  all  impurity  : 
Birth  and  deaths  sickness  and  age  are  yours. 
I  seek  the  highest  prize,  hard  to  attain  by  men — 
The  true  and  constant  wisdom  of  the  wise. 

34 


The  Supreme  Enlightenment 

And  when  they  could  not  shake  the  Bodhisatta's  calm, 
they  were  filled  with  shame,  and  abashed :  and  they  made 
a  prayer  to  the  Bodhisatta,  wishing  him  the  fruition  of 
his  labour: 

That  which  your  heart  desires,  may  you  attain, 
A7id finding  for  yow'sclf  deliverance,  deliver  all  I  ^ 

And  now  the  hosts  of  heaven,  seeing  the  army  of  Mara 
defeated,  and  the  wiles  of  the  daughters  of  Mara  vain, 
assembled  to  honour  the  Conqueror,  they  came  to  the  foot 
of  the  Tree  of  Wisdom  and  cried  for  joy : 

The  Blessed  Buddha — he  hath  prevailed  I 
And  the  Tempter  is  ove^'thrown  ! 

The  victory  was  achieved  while  the  sun  was  yet  above 
the  horizon.  The  Bodhisatta  sank  into  ever  deeper  and 
deeper  thought.  In  the  first  watch  of  the  night  he  reached 
the  Knowledge  of  Former  States  of  being,  in  the  middle 
watch  he  obtained  the  heavenly  eye  of  Omniscient  Vision, 
and  in  the  third  watch  he  grasped  the  perfect  under- 
standing of  the  Chain  of  Causation  which  is  the  Origin  of 
Evil,  and  thus  at  break  of  day  he  attained  to  Perfect 
Enlightenment.  Therewith  there  broke  from  his  lips  the 
song  of  triumph : 

Th7'ough  many  divers  births  I  passed 
Seeking  in  vain  the  builder  of  the  house. "^ 

^  According  to  other  books  the  temptation  by  the  daughters  of  Miira 
is  subsequent  to  the  Supreme  Enlightenment.  In  Plate  A  the  Temp- 
tation by  the  Daughters  of  Mara  takes  place  in  the  fifth  week  of  the 
Forty-nine  Days. 

2  The  house  is,  of  course,  the  house — or  rather  the  prison — of  indi- 
vidual existence  :  the  builder  of  the  house  is  desire  (/a«/fa)— the  will  to 
enjoy  and  possess.     See  p.  97. 

35 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Bic^  O  fi'Limcr  of  Jioiiscs,  thou  art  found — 

Never  again  shall  thou  fashion  a  house  formal 

Broken  are  all  thy  beams. 

The  king-post  shattered! 

My  mind  has  passed  into  the  stillness  of  Nibbdna 

The  ending  of  desire  has  been  attained  at  last ! 

Innumerable  wonders  were  manifest  at  this  supreme  hour. 
The  earth  quaked  six  times,  and  the  whole  universe  was 
illuminated  by  the  supernatural  splendour  of  the  sixfold 
rays  that  proceeded  from  the  body  of  the  seated  Buddha. 
Resentment  faded  from  the  hearts  of  all  men,  all  lack  was 
supplied,  the  sick  were  healed,  the  chains  of  hell  were 
loosed,  and  every  creature  of  whatsoever  sort  found  peace 
and  rest. 

The  Forty-nine  Days 

Gautama,  who  was  now  Buddha,  the  Enlightened,  remained 
seated  and  motionless  for  seven  days,  realizing  the  bliss  of 
Nibbana;  and  thereafter  rising,  he  remained  standing  for 
seven  days  more,  steadfastly  regarding  the  spot  where 
had  been  won  the  fruit  of  countless  deeds  of  heroic  virtue 
performed  in  past  births:  then  for  seven  days  more  he 
paced  to  and  fro  along  a  cloistered  path  from  West  to 
East,  extending  from  the  throne  beneath  the  Wisdom  Tree 
to  the  place  of  the  Steadfast  Gazing;  and  again  for 
seven  days  he  remained  seated  in  a  god-wrought  pavilion 
near  to  the  same  place,  and  there  reviewed  in  detail,  book 
by  book,  all  that  is  taught  in  the  AbhidJiamma  Pitaka,  as 
well  as  the  whole  doctrine  of  causality;  then  for  seven 
days  more  he  sat  beneath  the  Nigrodha  tree  of  Sujata's 
offering,  meditating  on  the  doctrine  and  the  sweetness  of 
Nibbana — and  according  to  some  books  it  was  at  this 
time  the  temptation  by  the  daughters  of  Mara  took  place ; 
36 


Plate  A 


THE  FORTY-NINE  DAYS 
From  an  illustrated  manuscript,  Sinhalese  (i8th  century) 


36 


The  Forty-nine  Days 

and  then  for  seven  days  more  while  a  terrible  storm  was 
raging,  the  snake  king  Mucalinda  sheltered  him  with 
his  sevenfold  hood;  and  for  seven  days  more  he  sat 
beneath  a  Rajayatana  tree,  still  enjoying  the  sweetness  of 
liberation. 

And  so  passed  away  seven  weeks,  during  which  the 
Buddha  experienced  no  bodily  wants,  but  fed  on  the  joy 
of  contemplation,  the  joy  of  the  Eightfold  Path,  and  the 
joy  of  its  fruit,  Nibbana. 

Only  upon  the  last  day  of  the  seven  weeks  he  desired  to 
bathe  and  eat,  and  receiving  water  and  a  tooth-stick  from 
the  god  Sakka,  the  Buddha  bathed  his  face  and  seated 
himself  at  the  foot  of  a  tree.  Now  at  that  time  two 
Brahman  merchants  were  travelling  with  a  caravan  from 
Orissa  to  the  middle  country,  and  a  Deva,  who  had  been 
a  blood  relation  of  the  merchants'  in  a  former  life,  stopped 
the  carts,  and  moved  their  hearts  to  make  an  offering  of 
rice  and  honey  cakes  to  the  Lord.  They  went  up  to  him 
accordingly,  saying :  "  O  Blessed  One,  have  mercy  upon 
us,  and  accept  this  food."  Now  the  Buddha  no  longer 
possessed  a  bowl,  and  as  the  Buddhas  never  receive  an 
offering  in  their  hands,  he  reflected  how  he  should  take  it. 
Immediately  the  Four  Great  Kings,  the  Regents  of  the 
Quarters  appeared  before  him,  each  of  them  with  a  bowl; 
and  in  order  that  none  of  them  should  be  disappointed, 
the  Buddha  received  the  four  bowls,  and  placing  them  one 
above  the  other  made  them  to  be  one,  showing  only  the 
four  lines  round  the  mouth,  and  in  this  bowl  the  Blessed 
One  received  the  food,  and  ate  it,  and  gave  thanks.  The 
two  merchants  took  refuge  in  the  Buddha,  the  Norm,  and 
the  Order,  and  became  professed  disciples.  Then  the 
Buddha  rose  up  and  returned  again  to  the  tree  of  Sujata's 
offering  and  there  took  his  seat.     And  there,  reflecting 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

upon  the  depth  of  truth  which  he  had  found,  a  doubt  arose 
in  his  mind  whether  it  would  be  possible  to  make  it  known 
to  others :  and  this  doubt  is  experienced  by  every  Buddha 
when  he  becomes  aware  of  the  Truth.  But  Maha  Brahma 
exclaiming :  "  Alas  !  the  world  will  be  altogether  lost !  " 
came  thither  in  haste,  with  all  the  Deva  hosts,  and  besought 
the  Master  to  proclaim  the  Truth;  and  he  granted  their 
prayer.^ 

T/ie  First  Turnhig  of  the  Wheel  of  the  Law 
Then  he  considered  to  whom  he  should  first  reveal  the  Truth, 
and  he  remembered  Alara,  his  former  teacher,  and  Uddaka, 
thinking  that  these  great  sages  would  quickly  comprehend 
it;  but  upon  close  reflection  he  discovered  that  each  of 
them  had  recently  died.  Then  he  thought  of  the  Five 
Wanderers  who  had  been  his  disciples,  and  upon  reflection 
he  saw  that  they  were  then  residing  in  the  Deer  Park  at 
Isipatana  in  Benares,  and  he  resolved  to  go  there.  When 
the  Five  Wanderers,  whose  chief  was  Kondaniia,  perceived 
the  Buddha  afar  off,  they  said  together:  "My  friends, 
here  comes  Gautama  the  Bhikkhu.  We  owe  him  no 
reverence,  since  he  has  returned  to  a  free  use  of  the 
necessaries  of  life,  and  has  recovered  his  strength,  and 
beauty.  However,  as  he  is  well-born,  let  us  prepare  him 
a  seat."     But  the  Blessed  One  perceived  their  thought, 

^  "Great  truths  do  not  take  hold  of  the  hearts  of  the  masses.  .  .  .  And 
now,  as  all  the  world  is  in  error,  I,  though  I  know  the  true  path — how 
shall  I,  how  shall  I  guide  ?  If  I  know  that  I  cannot  succeed  and  yet 
try  to  force  success,  this  would  be  but  another  source  of  error.  Better, 
then,  to  desist  and  strive  no  more.  But  if  I  strive  not,  who  will  ?  " — 
Chuang  Tzu.  It  is  highly  characteristic  of  the  psychology  of  genius 
that  when  this  doubt  assails  the  Buddha  he  nevertheless  immediately 
responds  to  a  definite  request  for  guidance ;  the  moment  the  pupil  puts 
the  right  questions,  the  teacher's  doubts  are  resolved. 

38 


II    ■"»  f 


».   (    v.. 


38 


Plate  B 

THE  FIRST  SERMON.  "  TURNING  THE  WHEEL 
OF  THE  LAW,"   AT   BENARES 

Gupta  period  (5th  century  a.d.),  Sarnath,  Benares 


The  First  Turning  of  the  Wheel  of  the  Law 

and  concentrating  that  love  wherewith  he  was  able  to 
pervade  the  whole  world,  he  directed  it  specially  towards 
them.  And  this  love  being  diffused  in  their  hearts,  as  he 
approached,  they  could  not  adhere  to  their  resolve,  but 
rose  from  their  seats  and  bowed  before  him  in  all  reverence. 
But  not  knowing  that  he  had  attained  enlightenment,  they 
addressed  him  as  '  Brother.'  He,  however,  announced 
the  Enlightenment,  saying :  "  O  Bhikkhus,  do  not  address 
me  as  'Brother,'  for  I  have  become  a  Buddha  of  clear 
vision  even  as  those  who  came  before." 
Now  the  Buddha  took  his  seat  that  had  been  prepared 
for  him  by  the  Five  Wanderers,  and  he  taught  them 
the  first  sermon,  which  is  called  Setting  in  Motion  the 
Wheel  of  the  Law,  or  the  Foundation  of  the  Kingdom  of 
Righteousness. 

"There  are  two  extremes  which  he  who  has  gone  forth 
ought  not  to  follow — habitual  devotion  on  the  one  hand 
to  the  passions,  to  the  pleasures  of  sensual  things,  a  low 
and  pagan  way  (of  seeking  satisfaction),  ignoble,  un- 
profitable, fit  only  for  the  worldly-minded ;  and  habitual 
devotion,  on  the  other  hand,  to  self-mortification,  which 
is  painful,  ignoble,  unprofitable.  There  is  a  Middle  Path 
discovered  by  the  Tathagata  ^ — a  path  which  opens  the 
eyes,  and  bestows  understanding,  which  leads  to  peace,  to 
insight,  to  the  higher  wisdom,  to  Nii^dna.  Verily!  it  is 
this  Ariyan  Eightfold  Path ;  that  is  to  say  Right  Views, 
Right  Aspirations,  Right  Speech,  Right  Conduct,  Right 
mode  of  livelihood.  Right  Effort,  Right  Mindfulness,  and 
Right  Rapture. 
"Now  this  is  the  Noble  Truth  as  to  suffering.     Birth  is 

^  That  is  by  the  Arahat ;  the  title  the  Buddha  always  uses  of  him- 
self. He  does  not  call  himself  the  Buddha ;  and  his  followers  never 
address  him  as  such. 

39 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

attended  with  pain,  decay  is  painful,  disease  is  painful, 
death  is  painful.  Union  with  the  unpleasant  is  painful, 
painful  is  separation  from  the  pleasant ;  and  any  craving 
unsatisfied,  that,  too,  is  painful.  In  brief,  the  five 
aggregates  of  clinging  (that  is,  the  conditions  of  indi- 
viduality) are  painful. 

"  Now  this  is  the  Noble  Truth  as  to  the  origin  of  suffering. 
Verily!  it  is  the  craving  thirst  that  causes  the  renewal 
of  becomings,  that  is  accompanied  by  sensual  delights, 
and  seeks  satisfaction,  now  here  now  there — that  is  to 
say,  the  craving  for  the  gratification  of  the  senses,  or  the 
craving  for  prosperity. 

"Now  this  is  the  Noble  Truth  as  to  the  passing  away 
of  pain.  Verily !  it  is  the  passing  away  so  that  no  passion 
remains,  the  giving  up,  the  getting  rid  of,  the  emancipation 
from,  the  harbouring  no  longer  of  this  craving  thirst. 
"  Now  this  is  the  Noble  Truth  as  to  the  way  that  leads 
to  the  passing  away  of  pain.  Verily !  it  is  this  Ariyan 
Eightfold  Path,  that  is  to  say.  Right  Views,  Right 
Aspirations,  Right  Speech,  conduct,  and  mode  of  live- 
lihood. Right  Effort,  Right  Mindfulness,  and  Right 
Rapture."  ^ 

Now  of  the  band  of  Bhikkhus  to  whom  the  first  sermon 
was  thus  preached,  Kondaiiiia  immediately  attained  to 
the  fruit  of  the  First  Path,  and  the  four  others  attained 
to  the  same  station  in  the  course  of  the  next  four  days. 
On  the  fifth  day  the  Buddha  summoned  all  five  to  his 
side,  and  delivered  to  them  the  second  discourse  called 
"On  the  Non-existence  of  Soul,"  of  which  the  substance 
is  related  as  follows : 

"  The  body,  O  Bhikkhus,  cannot  be  the  eternal  soul,  for  it 
tends  toward  destruction.     Nor  do  sensation,  perception, 
^  Rhys  Davids,  Early  Buddhism,  pp.  51,  52. 
40 


1 


Plate  C  4  n 

THE  FIRST  SERMON,  "  TURNING  THE  WHEEL  OF 

THE  LAW  " 

Nepalese  gilt  copper,  Sth-gth  century  a.d. 

A  ulhor's  Colled  ion 


The  First  Turning  of  the  Wheel  of  the  Law 

the  predispositions,  and  consciousness  together  constitute 
the  eternal  soul,  for  were  it  so,  it  would  not  be  the  case 
that  the  consciousness  likewise  tends  towards  destruction. 
Or  how  think  you,  whether  is  form  permanent  or  transitory  ? 
and  whether  are  sensation,  perception,  and  predispositions 
and  consciousness  permanent  or  transitory?  'They  are 
transitory,'  replied  the  Five.  'And  that  which  is  tran- 
sitor)%  is  it  evil  or  good?'  '  It  is  evil,'  replied  the  Five. 
'  And  that  which  is  transitory,  evil,  and  liable  to  change, 
can  it  be  said  that  'This  is  mine,  this  am  I,  this  is  my 
eternal  soul?'  '  Nay,  verily,  it  cannot  be  so  said,'  replied 
the  Five.  'Then,  O  Bhikkhus,  it  must  be  said  of  all 
physical  form  whatsoever,  past  or  present  or  to  be,  sub- 
jective or  objective,  far  or  near,  high  or  low,  that  "This 
is  not  mine,  this  am  I  not,  this  is  not  my  eternal  soul." ' 
And  in  like  manner  of  all  sensations,  perceptions,  predis- 
positions and  consciousness,  it  must  be  said,  'These  are 
not  mine,  these  am  I  not,  these  are  not  my  eternal  soul.' 
And  perceiving  this,  O  Bhikkhus,  the  true  disciple  will 
conceive  a  disgust  for  physical  form,  and  for  sensation, 
perception,  predispositions  and  consciousness,  and  so  will 
be  divested  of  desire ;  and  thereby  he  is  freed,  and 
becomes  aware  that  he  is  freed;  and  he  knows  that 
becoming  is  exhausted,  that  he  has  lived  the  pure  life, 
that  he  has  done  what  it  behoved  him  do,  and  that  he 
has  put  off  mortality  for  ever." 

And  throucrh  this  discourse  the  minds  of  the  Five  were 
perfectly  enlightened,  and  each  of  them  attained  to 
Nibbana,  so  that  at  this  time  there  existed  five  Arahats 
in  the  world,  with  the  Buddha  himself  the  sixth.  The 
next  day  a  young  man  of  the  name  of  Yasa,  together  with 
fifty-four  companions  likewise  attained  illumination,  and 
thus  there  were  sixty  persons  beside  the  Master  himself, 

41 


Buddha  &P  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

who  had  attained  to  Arahatta.  These  sixty  the  Master 
sent  forth  in  diverse  directions,  with  the  command  :  "  Go 
forth,  O  Bhikkhus,  preaching  and  teaching."  But  he 
himself  proceeded  to  Uruvela,  and  upon  the  way  he 
received  into  the  Order  thirty  young  noblemen,  and  these 
also  he  sent  forth  far  and  wide.  At  Uruvela  the  Master 
prevailed  against  three  Brahmanical  ascetics,  fire-worship- 
pers, and  received  them  into  the  Order  with  all  their 
disciples,  and  established  them  in  Arahatta.  The  chief 
of  these  was  known  as  Uruvela  Kassapa.  And  when  they 
were  seated  on  the  Gaya  Scarp,  he  preached  the  Third 
Sermon  called  the  Discourse  on  Fire : 
"All  things,  O  Bhikkhus  are  on  fire.  And  what,  O 
Bhikkhus,  are  all  these  things  that  are  on  fire  ?  The  eye 
is  on  fire,  forms  are  on  fire,  eye-consciousness  is  on  fire, 
impressions  received  by  the  eye  are  on  fire ;  and  whatever 
sensation — pleasant,  unpleasant,  or  neutral — originates  in 
the  impressions  received  by  the  eye,  is  likewise  on  fire. 
"And  with  what  are  all  these  on  fire?  I  say  with  the 
fire  of  lust  of  resentment,  and  the  fire  of  glamour  {rd^ay 
dosa,  and  moha) ;  with  birth,  old  age,  death,  lamentation, 
misery,  grief  and  despair  they  are  afire. 
"  And  so  with  the  ear,  with  the  nose,  and  with  the  tongue, 
and  in  the  case  of  touch.  The  mind  too,  is  on  fire, 
thoughts  are  on  fire ;  and  mind-consciousness,  and  the 
impressions  received  by  the  mind,  and  the  sensations  that 
arise  from  the  impressions  that  the  mind  receives,  these 
too  are  on  fire. 

"  And  with  what  are  they  on  fire  ?  I  say  with  the  fire  of 
lust,  with  the  fire  of  resentment,  and  the  fire  of  glamour; 
with  birth,  old  age,  death,  sorrow,  lamentation,  misery, 
and  grief  and  despair,  they  are  afire. 
"  And  seeing  this,  O  Bhikkhus,  the  true  disciple  conceives 
42 


Plate  D 

THE  BUDDHA  TEACHING 
Japanese  lacquered  wood  image,  8th  century.     Kozan-ji  Temple,  Kyoto. 

From  the  Kokka 


4* 


Conversion  of  Sariputta  &^  Mogallana 

disg-ust  for  the  eye,  for  forms,  for  eye-conscioivsncss, 
for  impressions  received  by  the  eye,  and  for  the  sensations 
arising  therein ;  and  for  the  ear,  the  nose,  the  tongue,  and 
for  the  sense  of  touch,  and  for  the  mind,  and  for  thoughts 
and  mind-consciousness,  impressions,  and  sensations.  And 
so  he  is  divested  of  desire,  and  thereby  he  is  freed, 
and  is  aware  that  he  is  freed,  and  he  knows  that 
becoming  is  exhausted,  that  he  has  lived  the  pure  life, 
that  he  has  done  what  it  behoved  him  to  do,  and  that  he 
has  put  off  mortality  for  ever."  ^ 

And  in  the  course  of  the  Sermon  upon  Fire,  the  minds 
of  the  thousand  Bhikkhus  assembled  there  were  freed 
from  attachment  and  delivered  from  the  stains,  and  so 
attained  to  Arahatta  and  Nibbana. 

Conversion  of  Sariputta  and  Mogallana 
And  now  the  Buddha,  attended  by  the  thousand  Arahats 
of  whom  the  chief  was  Uruvela  Kassapa,  repaired  to  the 
Palm  Grove  near  by  Rajagaha,  to  redeem  the  promise 
that  was  made  to  Bimbisara  the  king.  When  it  was 
reported  to  the  king:  "The  Master  is  come,"  he  hastened 
to  the  grove,  and  fell  at  the  Buddha's  feet,  and  when  he 
had  thus  offered  homage  he  and  all  his  retinue  sat  down. 
Now  the  king  was  not  able  to  know  whether  the  Buddha 
had  become  the  disciple  of  Uruvela  Kassapa,  or  Uruvela 
Kassapa  of  the  Buddha,  and  to  resolve  the  doubt  Uruvela 
Kassapa  bowed  down  to  the  Master's  feet,  saying:  "The 
Blessed  Lord  is  my  master,  and  I  am  the  disciple."  All 
the  people  cried  out  at  the  great  power  of  the  Buddha, 
exclaiming:  "  Even  Uruvela  Kassapa  has  broken  through 
the  net  of  delusion  and  has  yielded  to  the  follower  of  the 

^  Afahavagga,  I.  21  (a  summary  of  the  version  by  Warren,  Buddhism 
in  Translations,  p.  351). 

43 


Buddha  <§f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Buddhas  of  the  past!"  To  show  that  this  was  not  the 
first  time  that  Kassapa  the  Great  had  yielded  to  him  the 
Blessed  One  recited  the  Mahd  Ndrada  Kassapa  Jcltaka ; 
and  he  proclaimed  the  Four  Noble  Truths.  The  king  of 
Magadha,  with  nearly  all  his  retinue  entered  the  First 
Path,  and  those  who  did  not  so,  became  lay  disciples. 
The  king  gave  a  great  endowment  to  the  Order,  with 
Buddha  at  their  head,  and  confirmed  it  by  the  pouring 
out  of  water.  And  when  the  Master  had  thus  received  the 
Bambu-grove  Monastery,  he  returned  thanks,  and  rose 
from  his  seat,  and  repaired  thither.  Now  at  this  time 
there  dwelt  two  Brahmanical  ascetics  near  to  Rajagaha, 
by  name  Sariputta  and  Mogallana.  Now  Sariputta  ob- 
served the  venerable  Arahat  Assaji  on  his  begging  round, 
and  remarked  the  dignity  and  grace  of  his  demeanour; 
and  when  the  Elder  had  obtained  alms,  and  was  departing 
from  the  city,  Sariputta  found  occasion  to  speak  with  him, 
and  enquired  who  was  his  teacher,  and  what  the  accepted 
doctrine.  Assaji  replied,  "Brother,  there  is  a  great 
Sakya  monk,  to  follow  whom  I  left  the  world  and  this 
Blessed  One  is  my  teacher,  and  the  doctrine  I  approve  is 
his."  Then  Sariputta  enquired :  "  What  then,  venerable 
sir,  is  your  teacher's  doctrine?"  "Brother,"  replied 
Assaji,  "  I  am  a  novice  and  a  beginner,  and  it  is  not  long 
that  I  have  retired  from  the  world  to  adopt  the  discipline 
and  Doctrine.  Therefore  I  may  only  set  forth  to  you  the 
doctrine  in  brief,  and  give  the  substance  of  it  in  a  few 
words."  Then  the  venerable  Assaji  repeated  to  Sariputta 
the  Wanderer,  the  following  verse: 

W/ia^  things  soevej^  are  produced  f7vm  cajises. 

Of  these  the  Buddha  hath  revealed  the  cause, 

A  nd  likczuise  how  they  cease  to  be : 

'  Tis  this  the  great  adept  proclaims. 
44 


Return  of  the  Buddha  to  Kapilavatthu 

And  hearing  this  exposition  of  the  Doctrine,  Sariputta  the 
Wanderer  attained  to  a  clear  and  distinct  perception  of 
the  Truth  that  whatever  is  subject  to  origination  is  subject 
also  to  cessation.^  And  thus  Sariputta  attained  to  the 
First  Path.  Then  returning  to  Mogallana,  he  repeated  to 
him  the  same  verse,  and  he  too  attained  to  the  First  Path. 
And  these  two,  leaving  their  former  teacher,  entered  the 
order  established  by  the  Buddha,  and  within  a  short  time 
both  attained  to  Arahatta,  and  the  Master  made  them  his 
Chief  Disciples. 

Return  of  the  Buddha  to  Kapilavatthu 
In  the  meanwhile  it  was  reported  to  Suddhodana  that  his 
son,  who  for  six  years  had  devoted  himself  to  mortifica- 
tion, had  attained  to  Perfect  Enlightenment,  had  set 
rolling  the  Wheel  of  the  Law,  and  was  residing  at  the 
Bambu  Grove  near  by  Rajagaha.  And  he  sent  a  mes- 
senger with  a  retinue  of  a  thousand  men  with  the  message 
"Your  father,  king  Suddhodana,  desires  to  see  you." 
They  reached  the  monastery  at  the  hour  of  instruction, 
and  standing  still  to  listen  to  the  discourse,  the  messenger 
attained  to  Arahatta  with  all  his  retinue,  and  prayed 
to  be  admitted  to  the  Order;  and  the  Buddha  received 
them.  And  being  now  indifferent  to  the  things  of  the 
world,  they  did  not  deliver  the  king's  message.     In  the 

^  The  most  essential  element  of  Buddhist  doctrine,  the  full  realisation 
of  which  constitutes  the  enlightenment  of  a  Buddha,  is  here  stated  in 
the  fewest  possible  words.  The  clear  ejiunciation  of  the  law  of  uni- 
versal causation — the  eternal  continuity  of  becoming — is  the  great 
contribution  of  the  Buddha  to  Indian  thought ;  for  it  is  only  with  com- 
parative difficulty  that  the  Vedanta  is  able  to  free  itself  from  the 
concept  of  a  First  Cause.  Assaji's  verse  is  often  called  the  Buddhist 
Confession  of  Faith ;  it  is  quoted  in  Buddhist  inscriptions  more  fre- 
quently than  any  other  text. 

45 


Buddha  <^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

same  way  the  king  sent  other  messengers,  each  with  a 
like  retinue,  and  all  of  these,  neglecting  their  business, 
stayed  away  there  in  silence.  Then  the  king  prevailed 
upon  his  minister  Kaludayin  to  bear  the  message,  and  he 
consented  to  do  so  only  upon  condition  of  receiving  per- 
mission to  become  a  member  of  the  Order  himself.  "  My 
friend,"  the  king  said,  "thou  mayst  become  a  hermit  or 
not,  as  thou  wilt,  only  bring  it  about  that  I  may  see  my 
son  before  I  die." 

Kaludayin  repaired  to  Rajagaha,  and  standing  beside  the 
disciples  at  the  hour  of  instruction,  he  attained  to  Arahatta, 
and  was  received  into  the  Order.  Now  at  this  time  eight 
months  had  passed  since  the  Enlightenment,  and  of  this 
time,  the  first  Lent  or  Rainy  Season  was  spent  at  the 
Deer  Park  in  Benares,  the  next  three  months  at  Uruvela, 
and  two  months  at  Rajagaha.  And  now  the  cold  season 
was  over,  the  earth  was  decked  with  green  grass,  and  the 
trees  with  scarlet  flowers,  and  the  roads  were  pleasant  to 
to  the  traveller.  And  on  the  full-moon  day  in  March, 
Kaludayin,  a  full  week  since  his  admission  to  the  Order, 
spoke  with  the  Buddha,  and  proposed  to  him  that  he 
should  visit  his  father,  who  desired  to  see  him.  And  the 
Master,  foreseeing  that  salvation  of  many  would  result, 
assented,  saying  to  Kaludayin:  "Well  said,  Udayin,  I 
shall  go."  For  it  was  in  accordance  with  the  Rule  that 
the  Brethren  should  travel  from  place  to  place.  Attended 
by  twenty  thousand  well-born  Arahats,  and  travelling 
each  day  a  league,  he  reached  Kapilavatthu  in  two 
months.  But  Kaludayin  went  instantly  through  the  air, 
and  informed  the  king  that  his  son  had  taken  the  road, 
and  by  praising  the  virtues  of  the  Buddha  every  day,  he 
predisposed  the  Sakyas  in  his  favour. 
The  Sakyas  considered  what  would  be  the  most  pleasant 
46 


Plate  E 


STANDING   IMAGE  OF  THE  BUDDHA 
Gupta  period  (5th  century  a.d.),  Matluii 


46 


ira 


Conversion  of  the  Sakya  Princes 

place  for  his  residence,  and  they  chose  the  Nigrodha- 
grove  near  by  the  city.  With  flowers  in  their  hands, 
and  accompanied  by  children  of  the  place  and  the  young 
men  and  maidens  of  the  royal  family,  they  went  out  to 
meet  him,  and  led  him  to  the  grove.  But  regarding  him 
as  younger  than  themselves,  as  it  were  a  younger  brother, 
a  nephew,  or  a  grandson,  they  did  not  bow  down.  But 
the  Buddha,  understanding  their  thoughts,  performed  the 
miracle  of  taking  his  seat  upon  a  jewelled  platform  in  the 
air,  and  so  preaching  the  law.  And  the  king  seeing  this 
wonder  said :  "  O  Blessed  One,  when  Kala  Devala  bowed 
down  to  your  feet  on  the  day  of  thy  birth  I  did  obeisance 
to  thee  for  the  first  time.  And  when  I  saw  that  the 
shadow  of  the  Jambu-tree  remained  motionless  upon  the 
occasion  of  the  ploughing  festival  I  did  obeisance  for  the 
second  time;  and  now,  because  of  this  great  miracle,  I 
bow  again  to  thy  feet."  And  there  was  not  one  of  the 
Sakyas  who  did  not  bow  to  the  Buddha's  feet  at  the  same 
time.  Then  the  Blessed  One  descended  from  the  air,  and 
sat  upon  the  throne  that  had  been  prepared  for  him,  and 
there  he  delivered  a  discourse,  to  wit,  the  story  of  his 
former  birth  as  Prince  Vessantara. 

Conversion  of  the  Sakya  Princes 
The  next  day  the  master  entered  Kapilavatthu  to  beg  his 
food,  attended  by  the  twenty  thousand  Arahats.  When 
it  was  rumoured  that  the  young  prince  Siddhattha  was 
begging  from  door  to  door,  the  windows  of  the  many 
storied  houses  were  opened  wide,  and  a  multitude  gazed 
forth  in  amazement.  And  amongst  these  was  the  mother 
of  Rahula,  and  she  said  to  herself :  "  Is  it  right  that  my 
lord,  who  was  wont  to  go  to  and  from  in  this  town  in  a 
gilded  palanquin,  with  every  sign  of  pomp,  should  now  be 

47 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

begging  his  food  from  door  to  door,  with  shaven  hair  and 
beard,  and  clad  in  russet  robes?"  And  she  reported  the 
matter  to  the  king.  He,  instantly  rising,  went  forth  to 
remonstrate  with  his  son,  that  thus  he  put  the  Sakya  clan 
to  shame.  "  Do  you  think  it  impossible,"  said  he,  "that 
we  should  provide  meals  for  all  your  followers?"  "It 
is  our  custom,  O  king!"  was  the  reply.  "Not  so, 
Master,"  said  the  king;  "not  one  of  all  our  ancestors  has 
ever  begged  his  food."  "O  king,"  replied  the  Buddha, 
"  thy  descent  is  in  the  succession  of  kings,  but  mine  in 
the  succession  of  the  Buddhas :  and  every  one  of  these 
has  begged  his  daily  food,  and  lived  upon  alms." 
And  standing  in  the  middle  of  the  street  he  uttered  the 
verse : 

Arise  and  delay  not,  follow  aftei'  the  pure  life  I 
Who  follows  virtue  j-ests  in  bliss,  alike  in  this 
world  and  the  next. 

And  when  the  verse  was  finished  the  king  attained  to  the 
Fruit  of  the  First  Path.     Then  the  Buddha  continued : 

Follow  after  the  pure  life,  folloiv  not  after  sin  I 
Who  folloivs  virtue  rests  in  bliss  alike  in  this 
world  and  the  next. 

And  the  king  attained  to  the  Fruit  of  the  Second  Path. 
Then  the  Buddha  recited  the  Dhammapdla  Jdtaka,  and 
the  king  attained  to  the  Fruit  of  the  Third  Path.  It  was 
when  he  was  dying  that  the  king  attained  to  Arahatta : 
he  never  practised  the  Great  Effort  in  solitude. 
Now  as  soon  as  the  king  had  experienced  the  Fruit  of 
Conversion,  he  took  the  Buddha's  bowl  and  led  the  Blessed 
One  and  all  his  followers  to  the  palace,  and  served  them 
with  savoury  food. 
48 


Conversion  of  the  Sakya  Princes 

And  when  the  meal  was  over,  the  women  of  the  house 
came  and  paid  homage  to  the  Blessed  One,  except  only 
the  Mother  of  Rahula;  but  she  stayed  alone,  for  she 
thought,  "  If  I  have  the  least  value  in  the  eyes  of  my  lord 
he  will  come  himself  to  me,  and  then  I  will  do  him 
homage."  And  the  Buddha  went  accordingly  to  the 
chamber  of  the  Mother  of  Rahula,  and  he  was  accom- 
panied by  the  two  chief  Disciples,  and  he  sat  down  on 
the  seat  prepared  for  him.  Then  the  Mother  of  Rahula 
came  quickly  and  put  her  hands  upon  his  ankles  and  laid 
her  head  upon  his  feet,  and  so  did  homage  as  she  had 
purposed.  Then  the  king  said  to  the  Blessed  One, 
*'When  my  daughter  heard  that  thou  hadst  put  on  the 
russet  robes,  from  that  day  forth  she  also  dressed  only 
in  russet  garb ;  and  when  she  heard  of  thy  one  meal  a 
day,  she  also  took  but  a  single  meal;  and  when  she 
heard  that  thou  hadst  forsaken  the  use  of  a  high  couch, 
she  also  slept  upon  a  mat  on  the  floor;  and  when  her 
relatives  would  have  received  her  and  surrounded  her 
with  luxury,  she  did  not  hear  them.  Such  is  her  good- 
ness. Blessed  One."  "'Tis  no  wonder,"  said  the  Blessed 
One,  "  that  she  exercises  self-control  now,  when  her  wisdom 
is  matured ;  for  she  did  no  less  when  her  wisdom  was  not  yet 
matured."  And  he  related  the  Canda-kin7iara  Jdtaka. 
On  the  second  day  the  son  of  Suddhodana  and  the  Lady 
GautamI  was  to  celebrate  at  the  same  time  his  inaugura- 
tion as  crown  prince  and  his  marriage  with  Janapada 
Kalyani,  the  Beauty  of  the  Land.  But  the  Buddha  went 
to  his  house,  and  there  gave  him  his  bowl  to  carry ;  and 
with  a  view  to  his  abandoning  the  world,  he  wished  him 
true  happiness ;  and  then  rising  from  his  seat  he  went 
his  way.  And  the  young  man,  not  venturing  to  say  to 
the  Master,  "  Take  back  thy  bowl,"    perforce  followed 

D  49 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

him  to  the  place  of  his  retreat :  and  the  Buddha  received 
him  all  unwilling  as  he  was,  into  the  Order,  and  he  was 
ordained. 

Upon  the  morrow  the  Mother  of  Rahula  arrayed  the  child 
in  all  its  best  and  sent  him  to  the  Blessed  One,  saying  to 
him :  "  Look,  my  dear,  at  yonder  Monk,  attended  by  so 
many  Brethren :  he  is  your  father,  who  was  the  possessor 
of  a  great  treasure,  which  we  have  not  seen  since  he  left 
us.  Go  now  and  say,  'O  Father,  I  am  thy  son,  and  I 
have  need  of  the  treasure — give  me  the  treasure,  for  a 
son  is  heir  to  his  father's  property.' "  And  even  so  the 
child  went  up  to  the  Blessed  One  and  stood  before  him 
gladly  and  cheerfully.  And  when  the  Blessed  One  had 
finished  his  meal,  he  arose  and  went  away,  and  the  boy 
followed  him,  saying,  as  his  mother  had  taught  him,  "  O 
Monk !  give  to  me  my  inheritance."  Then  the  Blessed 
One  said  to  Sariputta,  "Well,  then,  Sariputta,  receive 
Rahula  into  our  Order." 

But  when  the  king  learnt  that  his  grandson  had  been 
ordained  he  was  deeply  grieved ;  and  he  made  known  his 
grief  to  the  Master,  and  won  from  him  the  promise  that 
henceforth  no  son  should  be  received  into  the  Order 
without  the  leave  of  his  father  and  mother. 
Now,  after  the  King  Suddhodana  had  attained  the  Fruit 
of  the  Third  Path,  the  Blessed  One,  together  with  the 
company  of  Brethren,  returned  to  Rajagaha,  and  took  up 
his  residence  in  the  Sita  Grove. 

But  between  Kapilavatthu  and  Rajagaha  the  Master  halted 
for  a  short  time  at  the  Mango  Grove  of  Anupiya.  And 
while  he  was  in  that  place  a  number  of  the  Sakya 
princes  determined  to  join  his  congregation,  and  to  this 
end  they  followed  him  thither.  The  chief  ofthese  princes 
were    Anuruddha,    Bhaddiva,    Kimbila,    Ananda,     the 

50 


Conversion  of  Anathapindika 

Buddha's  cousin,  who  was  afterwards  appointed  personal 
attendant,  and  Devadatta,  the  Buddha's  cousin,  who  was 
ever  his  enemy. 

Conversion  of  Anathapindika 

Now  in  these  days  there  was  a  very  wealthy  merchant,  by 
name  Anathapindika,  and  he  was  residing  at  the  house  of 
a  friend  at  Rajagaha,  and  the  news  reached  him  that  a 
Blessed  Buddha  had  arisen.  Very  early  in  the  morning 
he  went  to  the  Teacher,  and  heard  the  Law,  and  was  con- 
verted ;  and  he  gave  a  great  donation  to  the  Order,  and 
received  a  promise  from  the  Master  that  he  would  visit 
Savatthi,  the  merchant's  home.  Then  all  along  the  road 
for  the  whole  distance  of  forty-five  leagues  he  built  a 
resting-place  at  every  league.  And  he  bought  the  great 
Jetavana  Grove  at  Savatthi  for  the  price  of  as  many  pieces 
of  gold  as  would  cover  the  whole  ground.  In  the  midst 
thereof  he  built  a  pleasant  chamber  for  the  Master,  and 
separate  cells  for  the  eighty  Elders  round  about  it,  and 
many  other  residences  with  long  halls  and  open  roofs,  and 
terraces  to  walk  by  night  and  day,  and  reservoirs  of  water. 
Then  did  he  send  a  message  to  the  Master  that  all  was 
prepared.  And  the  Master  departed  from  Rajagaha,  and 
in  due  course  reached  Savatthi.  And  the  wealthy  merchant, 
together  with  his  wife  and  his  son  and  two  daughters 
in  festal  attire,  and  accompanied  by  a  mighty  train  of 
followers,  went  out  to  meet  him;  while  the  Blessed  One 
on  his  part  entered  the  new-built  monastery  with  all  the 
infinite  grace  and  peerless  majesty  of  a  Buddha,  making 
the  grove  to  shine  with  the  glory  of  his  person,  as  though 
it  had  been  sprinkled  with  dust  of  gold. 
Then  Anathapindika  said  to  the  Master:  "What  should 
I  do  with  this  monastery?"  and  the  Master  answered: 

51 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

"  Bestow  it  upon  the  Order,  whether  now  present  or  to 
come."  And  the  great  Merchant,  pouring  water  from  a 
golden  vessel  into  the  Master's  hands,  confirmed  the  gift 
in  these  terms.  And  the  Master  received  it  and  gave 
thanks  and  praised  the  uses  of  monasteries  and  the  gift 
of  them.  The  dedication  festival  lasted  nine  months. 
In  those  days  there  also  resided  at  Savatthi,  the  chief  town 
of  Kosala,  the  lady  Visakha,  the  wife  of  the  wealthy 
merchant  Punnavaddhana.  She  made  herself  the  patroness 
and  supporter  of  the  Order,  and  was  also  the  means  of  con- 
verting her  father-in-law,  who  was  previously  an  adherent 
of  the  naked  Jainas ;  and  for  this  reason  she  got  the  sur- 
name of  the  mother  of  Migara.  Beyond  this  was  her 
dedication  to  the  Order  of  the  monastery  of  Pubbarama, 
the  value  and  splendour  whereof  were  second  only  to  those 
of  the  monastery  erected  by  Anathapindika  himself. 

Tke  Buddha  averts  a  War 

Now  three  rainy  seasons  were  spent  by  the  Lord  in  the 
Bambu  Grove.  It  was  in  the  fifth  season,  when  he  was 
residing  in  the  Kutagara  Hall  of  the  Great  Forest  near  to 
Vesali  that  there  arose  a  dispute  between  the  Sakyas  and 
the  Koliyas  regarding  the  water  of  the  river  Rohini,  which, 
because  of  a  great  drought,  did  not  suffice  that  year  to 
irrigate  the  fields  on  both  banks.  The  quarrel  rose  high,  and 
matters  were  come  nearly  to  battle,  when  the  Buddha  pro- 
ceeded to  the  place,  and  took  his  seat  on  the  river  bank.  He 
enquired  for  what  reason  the  princes  of  the  Sakyas  and 
Koliyas  were  assembled,  and  when  he  was  informed  that 
they  were  met  together  for  battle,  he  enquired  what  was 
the  point  in  dispute.  The  princes  said  that  they  did  not 
know  of  a  surety,  and  they  made  enquiry  of  the  commander- 
in-chief,  but  he  in  turn  knew  not,  and  sought  information 
52 


The  Admission  of  Women 

from  the  regent ;  and  so  the  enquiry  went  on  until  it  reached 
the  husbandmen,  who  related  the  whole  affair.     "What 
then  is  the  value  of  water?"  said  the  Buddha.     "It  is 
but   little,"    said    the   princes.     "And  what  of  earth?" 
"  That  also  is  little,"  they  said.     "  And  what  of  princes  ?  " 
"  It  cannot  be  measured,"  they  said.     "Then  would  you," 
said  the  Buddha,  "  destroy  that  which  is  of  the  highest 
value  for  the  sake  of  that  which  is  little  worth?"  and  he 
appeased  the  wrath  of  the  combatants  by  the  recital  of 
sundry  Jatakas.     The  princes  now  reflected  that  by  the 
interposition  of  Buddha  much  bloodshed  had  been  avoided, 
and  that  had  it  not  been  so,  none  might  have  been  left  to 
report  the  matter  to  their  wives  and  children.    And  since, 
had  he  become,  as  he  might  if  he  had  so  pleased,  a  uni- 
versal monarch,  they  would  have  been  his  vassals,  they 
chose  two  hundred  and  fifty  of  their  number,  from  each 
party,  to  become  his  attendants,  and  join  the  Order.     But 
these  five  hundred  were  ordained  at  the  wish  of  their 
parents,  and  not  by  their  own  will,  and  their  wives  were 
filled  with  grief  for  their  sake. 

The  Admission  of  JVomen 

About  this  time  Suddhodana  fell  ill  with  a  mortal  sick- 
ness, and  as  soon  as  this  was  reported  to  the  Blessed 
One,  he  proceeded  to  Kapilavatthu  and  visited  his  father. 
And  when  he  had  come  before  him,  he  preached  to  him 
the  instability  of  all  things,  so  that  Suddhodana  attained 
to  the  Fruit  of  the  Fourth  Path ;  to  Arahatta,  and  Nibbana, 
and  thereafter  he  died. 

After  the  death  of  her  husband  the  widowed  queen,  the 
Matron  Gautami,  decided  to  adopt  the  life  of  the  hermitage, 
cut  off  her  hair,  and  proceeded  to  the  place  where  the 
Buddha  was  residing.     She  was  accompanied  by  the  wives 

53 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

of  the  five  hundred  princes  who  had  been  ordained  on  the 
occasion  of  the  imminent  battle  at  the  Rohini  river;  for 
these  considered  that  it  was  better  for  them  to  retire  from 
the  world,  than  to  remain  at  home  in  widowhood.  The 
Matron  Gautami  said  to  the  Buddha  that  as  Suddhodana 
was  now  dead,  and  Rahula  and  Nanda  were  both  ordained 
Brethren,  she  had  no  wish  to  reside  alone,  and  she  asked 
that  she  might  be  admitted  to  the  Order,  together  with 
the  princesses  who  were  with  her.  But  this  request  the 
Buddha  refused,  a  first,  a  second,  and  third  time,  for  he 
reflected  that  if  they  were  admitted,  it  would  perplex  the 
minds  of  many  who  had  not  yet  entered  the  Paths,  and 
would  be  the  occasion  of  evil  speaking  against  the  Order. 
And  when  they  were  still  refused,  the  women  feared  to 
ask  a  fourth  time,  and  they  returned  to  their  homes. 
And  the  Buddha  returned  to  the  Kutagara  hall,  near 
Vesali. 

Then  the  Matron  Gautami  said  to  the  other  princesses : 
My  children,  the  Buddha  has  thrice  refused  us  admission 
to  the  Order,  but  now  let  us  take  it  upon  ourselves  to  go 
to  him  where  he  now  is,  and  he  will  not  be  able  to  deny 
us."  They  all  cut  their  hair,  adopted  the  garb  of 
religieuses,  and  taking  earthen  alms-bowls,  set  out  for 
Vesali  on  foot ;  for  they  considered  that  it  was  contrary 
to  the  discipline  for  a  recluse  to  travel  by  car.  Then 
they  who  in  all  their  life  had  walked  only  on  smooth 
pavements,  and  regarded  it  as  a  great  matter  to  ascend 
or  descend  from  one  story  of  their  palaces  to  another, 
trod  the  dusty  roads,  and  it  was  not  until  evening  that 
they  reached  the  place  where  the  Buddha  was.  They 
were  received  by  Ananda.  And  when  he  saw  them,  their 
feet  bleeding  and  covered  with  dust,  as  if  half  dead,  his 
breast  was  filled  with  pity  and  his  eyes  with  tears,  and  he 

54 


The  Admission  of  Women 

enquired  the  meaning  of  their  journey.  When  this  was 
made  known  he  informed  the  Master,  describing  all  that 
he  had  seen.  But  the  Buddha  merely  said:  "Enough, 
Ananda,  do  not  ask  me  that  women  retire  from  the  house- 
hold life  to  the  homeless  life,  under  the  Doctrine  and 
Discipline  of  Him-who-has-thus-attained."  And  he  said 
this  three  times.  But  Ananda  besought  the  Blessed  One 
in  another  way  to  receive  the  women  into  the  homeless 
life.  He  asked  the  Blessed  One :  "  Are  women  competent. 
Reverend  Sire,  if  they  retire  from  the  household  to  the 
homeless  life,  to  attain  to  the  Fruits  of  the  First,  the 
Second,  the  Third,  and  the  Fourth  Paths,  even  to 
Arahatta?  "  The  Buddha  could  not  deny  the  competence 
of  women.  "Are  Buddhas,"  he  asked,  "born  into  the 
world  only  for  the  benefit  of  men  ?  Assuredly  it  is  for 
the  benefit  of  women  also."  And  the  Blessed  One 
consented  that  women  should  make  profession  and  enter 
the  Order,  subject  to  the  conditions  of  the  Eight  Duties 
of  Subordination  to  the  Brethren.  "  But,"  he  added,  "  if 
women  were  not  admitted  to  the  Order,  then  would  the 
Good  Law  endure  for  a  thousand  years,  but  now  it  will 
stand  for  five  hundred  years  only.  For  just  as  when 
mildew  falls  upon  a  field  of  flourishing  rice,  that  field  of 
rice  does  not  long  endure,  just  so  when  women  retire 
from  the  household  to  the  homeless  life  under  a  Doctrine 
and  Discipline,  the  norm  will  not  long  endure.  And 
just  as  a  large  reservoir  is  strengthened  by  a  strong  dyke, 
so  have  I  established  a  barrier  of  eight  weighty  regu- 
lations, not  to  be  transgressed  as  long  as  life  shall  last." 
And  in  this  way  the  Matron  GautamI  and  the  five  hundred 
princesses  were  admitted  to  the  order;  and  it  was  not 
long  before  Gautami  attained  to  Arahatta,  and  the  five 
hundred  princesses  attained  the  Fruit  of  the  First  Path. 

55 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

And  this  took  place  in  the  sixth  year  of  the  Enlighten- 
ment. 

Tke  Sixth  to  the  Foiirteejtth  Years 
The  sixth  rainy  season  was  spent  at  Savatthi,  and  there- 
after the  Blessed  One  repaired  to  Rajagaha.  Now  the 
name  of  king  Bimbisara's  wife  was  Khema,^  and  such  was 
her  pride  in  her  beauty  that  she  had  never  deigned  to 
visit  the  Master:  but  on  a  certain  occasion  the  king 
brought  about  a  meeting  by  means  of  a  stratagem.  Then 
the  Buddha  performed  a  miracle  for  her;  he  produced 
a  likeness  of  one  of  the  beautiful  nymphs  of  Indra's 
heaven,  and  while  she  beheld  it,  he  made  it  pass  through 
all  the  stages  of  youth,  middle  age,  old  age,  and  death. 
And  by  this  terrible  sight  the  Queen  was  disposed  to  hear 
the  Master's  teaching,  and  she  entered  the  First  Path, 
and  afterwards  attained  to  Arahatta. 
During  the  Master's  residence  in  Rajagaha  a  wealthy 
merchant  of  that  place  became  possessed  of  a  piece  of 
sandal  wood,  and  he  had  a  bowl  made  of  it.  This  bowl 
he  fastened  to  the  tip  of  a  tall  bamboo,  and  raising  it 
up  in  this  way,  he  announced :  "  If  any  Wanderer  or 
Brahman  be  possessed  of  miraculous  powers,  let  him  take 
down  the  bowl."  Then  Mogallana  and  other  of  the 
Brethren  egged  each  other  to  take  it  down,  and  that  other 
by  name  Pindola-Bharadvaja,  rose  up  into  the  sky  and 
took  the  bowl,  and  moved  three  times  round  the  city  ere 
he  descended,  to  the  astonishment  of  all  the  citizens. 
When  this  was  reported  to  the  Buddha,  he  remarked : 
"This  will  not  conduce  to  the  conversion  of  the  uncon- 
verted,  nor  to  the  advantage  of  the  converted."     And 

^  For  other  mention  of  the  Bhikkun!  Khema,  see  p.  223. 
56 


The  Sixth  to  the  Fourteenth  Years 

he  prohibited  the  Brethren  from  making  an  exhibition 
of  miraculous  powers. 

The  Buddha  met  with  opposition  to  his  teaching,  par- 
ticularly from  six  heretical  teachers,  each  of  whom  had  a 
large  train  of  adherents.  Of  these  heretical  teachers 
one  was  Sanjaya,  the  former  master  of  Sariputta  and 
Mogallana,  and  another  was  Nigantha  Nataputta,  who  is 
better  known  as  Vardhamana,  the  founder  of  the  sect  of 
the  Jainas,  whose  history  in  many  respects  recalls  that  of 
Buddhism,  while,  unlike  Buddhism,  it  still  numbers  many 
adherents  in  India  proper.  These  various  teachers  failed 
to  find  any  support  in  the  realm  of  Bimbisara,  and  there- 
fore betook  themselves  to  Savatthi,  hoping  to  secure 
greater  influence  with  King  Prasenajit.  Now  Savatthi 
was  the  place  were  all  former  Buddhas  have  exhibited 
their  greatest  miracle,  and  remembering  this  the  Buddha 
proceeded  thither  with  the  intention  of  confounding  his 
opponents.  He  took  up  his  residence  in  the  Jetavana 
monastery.  Very  soon  afterwards  he  exhibited  to  the 
people,  the  six  teachers,  and  King  Prasenajit,  a  series  of 
great  miracles,  creating  a  great  road  across  the  sky  from 
East  to  West,  and  walking  thereon  the  while  he  preached 
the  Good  Law.  By  these  means  the  heretical  teachers 
were  overcome. 

Following  upon  the  Great  Miracle,  the  Buddha  departed 
to  the  Heaven  of  the  Thirty-three,  and  there  preached  the 
Law  to  his  mother,  Maha  Maya.  The  Buddha  remained 
in  the  Heaven  of  the  Thirty-three  for  three  months,  and 
during  that  time  he  created  a  likeness  of  himself,  that 
continued  the  teaching  of  the  Law  on  earth,  and  went  every 
day  upon  his  rounds  begging  food.  When  the  Buddha 
was  about  to  descend  from  heaven,  Sakka  commanded 
Vissakamma,   the   divine   architect,    to   create   a    triple 

57 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

ladder,  the  foot  of  which  was  set  down  near  the  town  of 
Sankissa.  And  the  Buddha  descended  at  this  place, 
attended  by  Brahma  on  the  right  and  Sakka  on  the  left. 
From  Sankissa  the  Master  returned  to  the  Jetavana 
monastery  near  Savatthi.  Here  the  heretical  teachers 
induced  a  young  woman  of  the  name  of  Cinca  so  to 
act  as  to  arouse  the  suspicion  of  the  people  regarding 
her  relation  to  the  Master.  After  many  visits  to  the 
monastery,  she  contrived  a  means  to  assume  the  appear- 
ance of  a  woman  far  gone  in  pregnancy,  and  in  the  ninth 
month  she  brought  an  open  accusation,  and  required  that 
the  Master  should  provide  a  place  for  her  confinement. 
The  Buddha  answered  with  a  great  voice,  "  Sister,  whether 
thy  words  be  true  or  false,  none  knoweth  save  thou  and  I." 
At  that  very  moment  the  strings  gave  way,  wherewith  the 
woman  had  bound  upon  herself  the  wooden  globe  by 
means  of  which  she  had  assumed  the  appearance  of 
pregnancy.  Pursued  by  the  indignant  people,  she  dis- 
appeared in  the  midst  of  flames  rising  from  the  earth,  and 
descended  to  the  bottom  of  the  lowest  Purgatory. 
The  ninth  retreat  was  spent  in  the  Ghositarama  at 
Kausambi.  Here  there  arose  violent  disagreements 
among  the  Brethren  on  matters  of  discipline,  and  the 
Buddha's  wisdom  and  kindness  availed  not  to  restore 
peace.  He  therefore  left  the  Brethren  and  proceeded  to 
the  village  of  Balajalonakara  with  the  intention  of  residing 
alone  as  a  hermit.  He  met  on  the  way  Anuruddha, 
Nandiya  and  Kimbila,  who  were  living  in  perfect  unity 
and  content,  and  he  rejoiced  their  hearts  by  a  religious 
discourse.  Then  proceeding  to  the  Rakkhita  Grove  at 
Parileyyaka,  he  dwelt  alone. 

After  residing  for  some  time  at  Parileyyaka,  the  Lord 
proceeded  to  Savatthi.     Now  the  contumacious  Brethren 

58 


The  Sixth  to  the  Fourteenth  Years 

of  Kausambi  had  received  such  signal  marks  of  disrespect 
from  the  laity  of  that  city  that  they  resolved  to  proceed  to 
Savatthi  and  lay  the  matter  in  dispute  before  the  Master, 
and  they  abode  by  his  decision,  and  peace  was  restored. 
During    the    eleventh    retreat    the    Master    resided   at 
Rajagaha.     There  he  saw  one  day  a  Brahman,  by  name 
Bharadvaja,  superintending  the  cultivation  of  his  fields. 
The   Brahman,   seeing  the   Buddha  subsisting  upon  the 
alms  of  others,  said :  "  O  Wanderer,  I  plough  and  sow, 
and  so  find  my  livelihood.     Do  thou  also  plough  and  sow 
to  the  same  end?"     But  the  Buddha  replied:  *' I,  too, 
plough  and  sow,  and  it  is  thus  that   I  find  my  food." 
The  Brahman  was  surprised,  and  said :  *'  I  do  not  see,  O 
reverend  Gautama,  that  you  have  a  yoke,  ploughshare, 
goad,    or    bullocks.      How,    then,   say    that    thou    too 
labourest?"     Then  the  Lord  said:  "Faith  is  the  seed  I 
sow;  devotion  is  the  rain;  modesty  is  the  ploughshaft ; 
the  mind  is  the  tie  of  the  yoke ;  mindfulness  is  my  plough- 
share and  goad.     Energy  is  my  team  and  bullock,  leading 
to  safety,  and  proceeding  without  backsliding  to  the  place 
where  there   is    no   sorrow."     And    Bharadvaja  was   so 
much  affected  by  this  parable  that  he  was  converted  and 
made  confession  and  was  admitted  to  the  Order. 
In  the  thirteenth  year,  during  his  stay  at  Kapilavatthu, 
the  Buddha  was  subjected  to  violent  insults  on  the  part  of 
his  father-in-law,  Suprabuddha,  and  he  uttered  the  pre- 
diction that  within  a  week  Suprabuddha  would  be  swallowed 
alive  by  the  earth.     And,  notwithstanding  Suprabuddha 
spent  the  whole  week  in  the  tower  of  his  palace,  the  earth 
opened    and    he  was  swallowed    up  in  accordance  with 
the  prophecy,  and  he  sank  into  the  lowest  Purgatory. 
The   Lord  returned  from  Kapilavatthu  to  the  Jetavana 
monastery  at  Savatthi  and  thence  proceeded  to  Alavi,  a 

59 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

place  that  was  haunted  by  a  man-eating  ogre  who  was  accus- 
tomed to  devour  the  children  of  the  place  day  after  day. 
When  the  Buddha  appeared  before  him,  he  was  received 
with  threats,  but  the  Master,  by  gentleness  and  patience, 
succeeded  in  softening  his  heart,  and  was  able  also  to 
answer  the  questions  propounded  by  the  ogre,  who  became 
a  believer  and  mended  his  life.  The  fierce  robber  Angu- 
limala,  too,  he  won  over  to  the  Good  Law,  and  notwith- 
standing his  evil  life  he  quickly  attained  to  Arahatta. 
About  this  time  the  pious  Anathapindika  gave  his 
daughter  in  marriage  to  the  son  of  a  friend  residing  in 
Anga,  and  as  the  Anga  family  were  supporters  of  the 
heretical  teacher  Nigantha,  he  gave  his  daughter  a  train 
of  maidservants  to  support  her  in  the  right  faith.  The 
young  wife  refused  to  do  honour  to  the  naked  Jaina 
ascetics,  and  she  awakened  an  eager  desire  in  the  heart 
of  her  mother-in-law  to  hear  the  preaching  of  the  Master : 
and  when  he  arrived  the  whole  family  together  with  many 
others  were  converted.  Leaving  the  completion  of  the 
work  of  conversion  to  Anuruddha,  the  Buddha  returned  to 
Savatthi. 

T/ie  Biiddhds  Daily  Life 

In  this  way  there  passed  by  year  after  year  of  the  Buddha's 

wandering  ministry,  but  the  events  of  the  middle  years 

cannot  be  chronologically  arranged  with  exactitude;   it 

will  suffice  if  we  give  a  general  description  of  the  Master's 

daily  life  at  this  time.^ 

"  From  year  to  year  the  change  from  a  period  of  wandering 

to  a  period  of  rest  and  retirement  repeated  itself  for  Buddha 

and  his  disciples.     In  the  month  of  June  when,  after  the 

^  What  follows  is  quoted  from  the  admirable  summary  of  Oldenberg. — 
Buddha,  English  translation  by  W.  Hoey.  ^ 

60 


The  Buddha's  Daily  Life 

dry,  scorching  heat  of  the  Indian  summer,  clouds  come 
up  in  towering  masses,  and  the  rolHng  thunders  herald 
the  approach  of  the  rain-bearing  monsoon,  the  Indian 
to-day,  as  in  ages  past,  prepares  himself  and  his  home  for 
the  time  during  which  all  usual  operations  are  interrupted 
by  the  rain:  for  whole  weeks  long  in  many  places  the 
pouring  torrents  confine  the  inhabitants  to  their  huts, 
or  at  any  rate,  to  their  villages,  while  communication 
with  neighbours  is  cut  off  by  rapid,  swollen  streams,  and 
by  inundations.  'The  birds,'  says  an  ancient  Buddhist 
work,  'build  their  nests  on  the  tops  of  trees:  and  there 
they  nestle  and  hide  during  the  damp  season.'  And  thus 
also,  it  was  an  established  practice  with  the  members 
of  monastic  orders,  undoubtedly  not  first  in  Buddha's 
time,  but  since  ever  there  was  a  system  of  religious 
itinerancy  in  India,  to  suspend  itinerant  operations  during 
the  three  rainy  months  and  to  spend  this  time  in  quiet 
retirement  in  the  neighbourhood  of  towns  and  villages, 
where  sure  support  was  to  be  found  through  the  charity 
of  believers.  .  .  .  Buddha  also  every  year  for  three  months 
'  kept  vassa,  rainy  season,'  surrounded  by  groups  of  his 
disciples,  who  flocked  together  to  pass  the  rainy  season 
near  their  teacher.  Kings  and  wealthy  men  contended 
for  the  honour  of  entertaining  him  and  his  disciples,  who 
were  with  him,  as  guests  during  this  season  in  the  hospices 
and  gardens  which  they  had  provided  for  the  community. 
The  rains  being  over,  the  itinerating  began :  Buddha 
went  from  town  to  town  and  village  to  village,  always 
attended  by  a  great  concourse  of  disciples:  the  texts  are 
wont  to  speak  in  one  place  of  three  hundred,  and  in 
another  of  five  hundred,  who  followed  their  master.  In 
the  main  streets,  through  which  the  religious  pilgrims, 
like  travelling  merchants,  used  to  pass,  the  believers  who 

6i 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

dwelt  near  had  taken  care  to  provide  shelter,  to  which 
Buddha  and  his  disciples  might  resort :  or,  where  monks 
who  professed  the  doctrine  dwelt,  there  was  sure  to  be 
found  lodging  for  the  night  in  their  abodes,  and  even  if 
no  other  cover  was  to  be  had,  there  was  no  want  of  mango 
or  banyan  trees,  at  the  feet  of  which  the  band  might  halt 
for  the  night.  .  .  . 

"The  most  important  headquarters  during  these  wan- 
derings, at  the  same  time  the  approximately  extreme  points, 
to  the  north-west  and  south-east  of  the  area,  in  which 
Buddha's  pilgrim  life  was  passed,  are  the  capital  cities  of  the 
kings  of  Kosala  and  Magadha,  Savatthi,  now  Sahet  Maheth 
on  the  Rapti,  and  Rajagaha,  now  Rajgir,  south  of  Bihar. 
In  the  immediate  neighbourhood  of  these  towns  the  com- 
munity possessed  numerous  pleasant  gardens,  in  which 
structures  of  various  kinds  were  erected  for  the  require- 
ments of  the  members.  '  Not  too  far  from,  nor  yet  too 
near  the  town,'  thus  runs  the  standard  description  of  such 
a  park  given  in  the  sacred  texts,  'well  provided  with 
entrances  and  exits,  easily  accessible  to  all  people  who 
enquire  after  it,  with  not  too  much  of  the  bustle  of  life  by 
day,  quiet  by  night,  far  from  commotion  and  the  crowds 
of  men,  a  place  of  retirement,  a  good  place  for  solitary 
meditation.'  Such  a  garden  was  the  Veluvana,  '  Bambu 
Grove,'  once  a  pleasure-ground  of  King  Bimbisara,  and 
presented  by  him  to  Buddha  and  the  Church :  another  was 
the  still  more  renouned  Jetavana  at  Savatthi,  a  gift  made 
by  Buddha's  most  liberal  admirer,  the  great  merchant 
Anathapindika.  Not  alone  the  sacred  texts,  but  equally 
also  the  monumental  records,  the  reliefs  of  the  great  Stupa 
of  Bharhut,  recently  explored,  show  how  highly  celebrated 
this  gift  of  Anathapindika's  was  from  the  earliest  days  in 
the  Buddhist  Church.  .  .  .  If  it  is  possible  to  speak  of  a 
62 


The  Buddha's  Daily  Life 

home  in  the  homeless  wandering  life  of  Buddha  and  his 
disciples,  places  like  the  Veluvana  and  Jetavana  may  of 
all  others  be  so  called,  near  the  great  centres  of  Indian 
life  and  yet  untouched  by  the  turmoil  of  the  capitals,  once 
the  quiet  resting-places  of  rulers  and  nobles,  before  the 
yellow-robed  mendicants  appeared  on  the  scene,  and 'the 
Church  in  the  four  quarters,  present  and  absent,'  succeeded 
to  the  possession  of  the  kingly  inheritance.  In  these 
gardens  were  the  residences  of  the  brethren,  houses,  halls, 
cloisters,  storerooms,  surrounded  by  lotus-pools,  fragrant 
mango  trees,  and  slender  fan-palms  that  lift  their  foliage 
high  over  all  else,  and  by  the  deep  green  foliage  of  the 
Nyagrodha  tree,  whose  roots  dropping  from  the  air  to  earth 
become  new  stems,  and  with  their  cool  shady  arcades  and 
leafy  walks  seem  to  invite  to  peaceful  meditation. 
"These  were  the  surroundings  in  which  Buddha  passed  a 
great  part  of  his  life,  probably  the  portions  of  it  richest  in 
effective  work.  Here  masses  of  the  population,  lay  as 
well  as  monastic,  flocked  together  to  see  him,  and  to  hear 
him  preach.  Hither  came  pilgrim  monks  from  far 
countries,  who  had  heard  the  fame  of  Buddha's  teaching, 
and,  when  the  rainy  season  was  past,  undertook  a  pilgrim- 
age to  see  the  Master  face  to  face.  .  .  . 
"The  fame  of  Buddha's  person  also  drew  together  from 
far  and  near  crowds  of  such  as  stood  without  the  narrower 
circles  of  the  community.  'To  the  ascetic  Gotama,' 
people  remarked  to  one  another,  '  folks  are  coming,  passing 
through  kingdoms  and  countries,  to  converse  with  him.' 
Often,  when  he  happened  to  halt  near  the  residences  of 
potentates,  kings,  princes,  and  dignitaries  came  on  wagons 
or  on  elephants  to  put  questions  to  him  or  to  hear  his 
doctrine.  Such  a  scene  is  described  to  us  in  the  opening 
of  the  '  Sutra  on  the  fruit  of  asceticism,'  and  reappears  in 

63 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

pictorial  representation  among  the  reliefs  at  Bharhut. 
The  Sutra  relates  how  King  Ajatasattu  of  Magadha  in 
the  '  Lotus-night ' — that  is,  in  the  full  moon  of  October, 
the  time  when  the  lotus  blooms — is  sitting  in  the  open  air, 
surrounded  by  his  nobles  on  the  flat  roof  of  his  palace. 
*Then,'  as  it  is  recorded  in  that  text,  the  king  of  Magadha, 
Ajatasattu,  the  son  of  the  Vaidehi  princes,  uttered  this 
exclamation,  'Fair  in  sooth  is  this  moonlight  night, 
lovely  in  sooth  is  this  moonlight  night,  grand  in  sooth 
is  this  moonlight  night,  happy  omens  in  sooth  giveth 
this  moonlight  night.  What  Samana  ^  or  what  Brahman 
shall  I  go  to  hear,  that  my  soul  may  be  cheered  when 
I  hear  him?'  "  One  counseller  names  this  and  another 
that  teacher :  but  Jivaka,  the  king's  physician,  sits  on  in 
silence.  Then  the  king  of  Magadha,  Ajatasattu,  the 
sun  of  Vedehi,  spake  to  Jivaka  Komarabhacca :  "  Why 
art  thou  silent,  friend  Jivaka?" — "Sire,  in  my  mango 
grove  he  resteth,  the  exalted,  holy,  supreme  Buddha, 
with  a  great  band  of  disciples,  with  three  hundred  monks ; 
of  him,  the  exalted  Gotama,  there  spreadeth  through  the 
world  lordly  praise  in  these  terms :  He,  the  exalted  one,  is 
the  holy,  supreme  Buddha,  the  wise,  the  learned,  the 
blessed,  who  knoweth  the  universe,  the  highest,  who 
tameth  man  like  an  ox,  the  teacher  of  gods  and  men,  the 
exalted  Buddha.  Sire,  go  to  hear  him,  the  exalted  one : 
perchance,  if  thou  seest  him,  the  exalted  one,  thy  soul, 
O  sire,  may  be  refreshed  " — and  the  king  orders  elephants 
to  be  prepared  for  himself  and  the  queens,  and  the  royal 
procession  moves  with  burning  torches  on  that  moonlight 
night  through  the  gate  of  Rajagaha  to  Jivaka's  mango 
grove,  where  Buddha  is  said  to  have  held  with  the  king 
the  famous  discourse,  'On  the  fruits  of  asceticism,'  at 
^  A  begging  friar,  Bhikkhu. 
64 


The  Buddha's  Daily  Life 

the  end  of  which  the  king  joined  the  Church  as  a  lay- 
member.  .  .  . 

"  A  frequent  end  of  these  dialogues  is,  of  course,  that 
the  vanquished  opponents  or  the  partisans  of  Buddha 
invite  him  and  his  disciples  to  dine  on  the  following  day. 


The  Buddha  Teaching  in  the  House  of  a  Layman 
(Ajanta  Frescoes,  after  Griffiths) 

'  Sir,  may  it  please  the  Exalted  One  and  his  disciples  to 
dine  with  me  to-morrow.'  And  Buddha  permits  his  con- 
sent to  be  inferred  from  his  silence.  On  the  following 
day,  about  noon,  when  dinner  is  ready,  the  host  sends 
word  to  Buddha:  'Sire,  it  is  time,  the  dinner  is  ready'; 
and  Buddha  takes  his  cloak  and  alms-bowl    and  eoes 

E  65 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

with  his  disciples  into  the  town  or  village  to  the  residence 
of  his  host.  After  dinner  ...  at  which  the  host  himself 
and  his  family  serve  the  guests,  when  the  customary 
hand-washing  is  over,  the  host  takes  his  place  with  his 
family  at  Buddha's  side,  and  Buddha  addresses  to  them  a 
word  of  spiritual  admonition  and  instruction. 
"  If  the  day  be  not  filled  by  an  invitation,  Buddha,  accord- 
ing to  monastic  usages,  undertakes  his  circuit  of  the 
village  or  town  in  quest  of  alms.  He,  as  well  as  his 
disciples,  rises  early,  when  the  light  of  dawn  appears  in 
the  sky,  and  spends  the  early  moments  in  spiritual  exer- 
cises or  in  converse  with  his  disciples,  and  then  he 
proceeds  with  his  companions  towards  the  town.  In  the 
days  when  his  reputation  stood  at  its  highest  point  and 
his  name  was  named  throughout  India  among  the  fore- 
most names,  one  might  day  by  day  see  that  man  before 
whom  kings  bowed  themselves,  walking  about,  alms-bowl 
in  hand,  through  streets  and  alleys,  from  house  to  house, 
and  without  uttering  any  request,  with  downcast  look, 
stand  silently  waiting  until  a  morsel  of  food  was  thrown 
into  his  bowl. 

"  When  he  had  returned  from  his  begging  excursion  and 
had  eaten  his  repast,  there  followed,  as  the  Indian  climate 
demanded,  a  time,  if  not  of  sleep,  at  any  rate  of  peaceful 
retirement.  Resting  in  a  quiet  chamber  or,  better  still, 
in  the  cool  shades  of  dense  foliage,  he  passed  the  sultry 
close  hours  of  the  afternoon  in  solitary  contemplation 
until  the  evening  came  on  and  drew  him  once  more  from 
holy  silence  to  the  bustling  concourse  of  friend  and  foe." 

Tke  Appohitnient  of  Ananda 

During  the  first  twenty  years  of  the  Buddha's  life,  his 

personal   attendants   were    not    such   permanently.     The 

66 


Plate  G 

STANDING  IMAGE  OF  TIIi:  BUDDHA  ATTENDED  BY 

Ananda  and  kassapa  and  two  BODHISATTAS 

Chinese  stele,  Wei  dynasty.  6th  century  a.d. 
Co  lection  of  Mr  Vic'or  Golonbew 


66. 


The  Appointment  of  Ananda 

Brethren  took  it  by  turns  to  carry  the  Master's  bowl  and 
cloak,  and  he  did  not  favour  one  more  than  another.  But 
one  day  he  addressed  the  Brethren  and  said  :  "  O  Bhikkhus, 
I  am  now  advanced  in  years :  ^  and  some  Bhikkhus,  when 
they  have  been  told  *  Let  us  go  this  way,'  take  another 
way,  and  some  drop  my  bowl  and  cloak  on  the  ground. 
Do  ye  know  of  a  Bhikkhu  to  be  my  permanent  body- 
servant  ?  "  Then  the  venerable  Sariputta  arose  and  said  : 
"I  Lord,  will  wait  upon  thee."  Him  the  Exalted  One 
rejected,  and  Mogallana  the  Great,  also.  Then  all  of  the 
foremost  disciples  said:  "We  will  wait  upon  thee." 
Only  Ananda  remained  silent :  for  he  thought "  The  Master 
himself  will  say  of  whom  he  approves."  Then  the  Exalted 
One  said :  *'  O  Bhikkhus,  Ananda  is  not  to  be  urged  by 
others :  if  he  knows  it  of  himself,  he  will  wait  upon  me." 
Then  Ananda  stood  up  and  said :  "  If,  Lord,  thou  wilt 
refuse  me  four  things,  and  grant  me  four  things,  then  I 
will  wait  on  thee."  Now  the  four  things  that  Ananda 
wished  to  be  denied  were  special  favours,  for  he  did  not 
wish  it  to  be  said  that  his  service  was  undertaken  for  the 
sake  of  clothes,  or  good  fare,  or  lodging,  or  that  he  might 
be  included  in  invitations.  And  the  four  boons  that  he 
desired  were  that  the  Buddha  would  accept  any  invitation 
received  through  Ananda,  that  he  would  be  easy  of  access 
to  such  as  Ananda  should  bring  to  speak  with  him  and  to 
Ananda  himself,  and  that  he  would  repeat  to  Ananda  such 
doctrines  as  he  desired  to  hear  again :  for  Ananda  did 
not  wish  it  to  be  thought  that  the  Buddha  made  no  account 
of  him,  nor  that  men  should  say  that  the  Buddha's  im- 
mediate attendant  was  not  well  versed  in  the  doctrine.  All 
these  boons  were  granted  by  the  Blesssed  One,  and  thence- 
forward until  the  day  of  his  death,  Ananda  remained  the 
^  The  Buddha  was  at  this  time  fifty-six  years  of  age. 

67 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

permanent  attendant  of  the  Buddha.^  It  was  not,  however, 
until  after  the  Buddha's  death  that  Ananda  attained  to 
Arahatta. 

Tke  Enmity  of  Devadatta 

In  the  picture  of  Buddha's  daily  life  described  a  few 
pages  previously,  mention  is  made  of  Ajatasattu,  King  of 
Magadha.  This  Ajatasattu  was  the  son  of  Bimbisara,  the 
chief  of  the  Buddha's  royal  supporters.  When  Ajatasattu 
was  conceived,  it  was  indicated  by  an  omen  and  a  prophecy 
that  he  would  be  the  slayer  of  his  father.  And  this  came 
to  pass  at  the  instigation  of  Devadatta.  One  day  when 
the  Buddha  was  teaching  in  the  Bambu  Grove,  Devadatta 
proposed  that  because  of  the  Master's  advanced  age, 
the  leadership  of  the  Congregation  should  be  vested  in 
himself.  From  the  time  when  this  suggestion  was  plainly 
refused,  Devadatta's  enmity  and  ill-will  greatly  increased. 
Because  of  what  had  taken  place  the  Buddha  issued  a 
decree  against  Devadatta  as  a  renegade  whose  words 
were  not  to  be  recognized  as  proceeding  from  the  Buddha, 
the  Law,  or  the  Community.  The  angry  Devadatta  now 
betook  himself  to  Ajatasattu,  King  Bimbisara's  son  and 
heir,  and  persuaded  him  to  murder  his  father  and  usurp 
the  throne,  while  Devadatta  should  kill  the  Master  and 
become  Buddha.  Bimbisara  however  discovered  his 
son's  intention,  and  so  far  from  punishing  him  in  any  way, 
abdicated  the  throne  and  gave  over  the  kingdom  to  his 
son.  Nevertheless,  upon  Devadatta's  representing  that 
Bimbisara  might  desire  to  recover  the  throne,  Ajatasattu 
brought  about  his  death  by  starvation. 

^  Personal  service  on  the  Buddha  impHed  to  bring  his  water  and  tooth- 
brush, wash  his  feet,  accompany  him  abroad,  bear  his  bowl  and  cloak, 
sweep  his  cell,  and  act  as  chamberlain. 
68 


Plate  H 


Tin-    QUELLING  OF  MAlAGIRI 

Amaravatl,  2nd  ccntiirv  a.d. 


68 


The  Enmity  of  Devadatta 

Then  Devadatta  secured  the  new  king's  consent  to  the 
murder  of  the  Buddha,  and  he  hired  thirty-one  men 
to  carry  out  his  purpose.  All  these  men,  however,  not- 
withstanding they  were  notorious  criminals,  were  so 
affected  by  the  majesty  and  loving  kindness  of  the  Master, 
that  they  could  not  raise  hand  against  him,  but  on  the  con- 
trary, experienced  conversion,  and  joined  the  Community. 
Devadatta  was  now  convinced  that  the  Buddha  could  not 
be  slain  by  any  human  being,  and  determined  to  let  loose 
upon  him  the  fierce  elephant  Malagiri.  This  beast  was 
accustomed  to  drink  eight  measures  of  spirituous  liquor 
every  day,  but  Devadatta  commanded  the  keeper  to  give  it 
sixteen  measures  the  next  day,  and  to  let  it  loose  against 
the  Buddha  as  he  proceeded  through  the  streets.  The 
Buddha  was  informed  of  what  was  to  be  done,  but  he 
refused  to  change  his  usual  procedure,  and  he  entered  the 
city  at  the  usual  hour,  accompanied  by  a  company  of 
Bhikkhus.  Soon  afterwards  the  elephant  was  let  loose 
upon  him,  and  at  once  it  raged  through  the  streets, 
working  havoc.  The  Bhikkhus  entreated  the  Master 
to  escape,  but  as  he  would  not,  they  sought  to  walk  before 
him,  in  order  that  he  might  not  be  the  first  to  meet  the 
savage  beast,  but  this  the  Buddha  forbade,  albeit  in 
the  case  of  Ananda,  his  doing  so  was  only  prevented 
by  the  exercise  of  miraculous  power.  At  this  moment 
the  elephant  was  about  to  destroy  the  mother  of  a 
child  who  had  run  into  the  street  in  ignorance  of  the 
danofcr :  but  the  Buddha  called  to  it :  "It  was  not  intended 
that  you  should  destroy  any  other  being  than  myself: 
here  am  I :  waste  not  your  strength  on  any  less  noble 
object."  On  hearing  the  voice  of  Buddha,  the  elephant 
looked  towards  him;  and  immediately  the  effects  of  the 
liquor  passed  away,  and  the  elephant  approached  him  in 

69 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

the  gentlest  fashion  and  kneeled  before  him.  The  Master 
charged  him  to  take  no  life  in  future,  but  to  be  kind 
to  all  people:  and  the  elephant  repeated  the  five  pre- 
cepts before  the  assembled  crowds.  Thus  the  rage  of 
Malagiri  was  subdued,  and  had  he  not  been  a  quadruped, 
he  mieht  have  entered  the  First  Path.^  As  Buddha  had 
thus  performed  a  miracle,  he  reflected  that  it  would  not 
be  becoming  to  seek  alms  in  the  same  place,  and  he 
therefore  returned  to  the  Jetavana  monastery,  without 
proceeding  on  his  usual  course. 

Following  upon  this,  Devadatta  attempted  to  create  a 
schism  in  the  Order.    Together  with  certain  other  Bhikkhus 
he  requested  the  Buddha  to  establish  a  more  severely 
ascetic  rule  for  the  Brethren,  as  that  they  should  clothe 
themselves  only  in  cast-off  rags,  that  they  should  dwell  as 
forest-hermits,  accept  no  invitations,  and  abstain  from  fish 
and  meat.     The  Master  refused  to  concede  these  demands, 
declaring  that  those  who  wished  might  adopt  this  more 
severe  rule,  but  that  he  would  not  make  it  binding  upon  all. 
Devadatta,  who  expected  this  refusal,  made  it  the  occasion 
of  division  within  the  Order.     Together  with  a  party  of 
five  hundred  recently  ordained  Brethren,  he  made  his  way 
to  Gaya  Scarp.     But  as  he  was  preaching  there,  he  happened 
to   see   Sariputta   and   Mogallana  in  the  audience,   and 
thinking  them  to  be  of  his  party,  he  requested  Sariputta 
to  preach,  while  he  himself  slept.    Sariputta  and  Mogallana 
now  addressed  the  assembly  and  persuaded  the  five  hundred 
schismatics  to  return  to  the  Master.     When  Devadatta 
awoke  and  learnt  what  had  taken  place,  the  hot  blood 
broke  from  his  mouth  in  anger.     Devadatta  lay  sick  for 
nine  months :  and  at  the  end  of  this  time  he  determined 

*  Animals  may  keep   the    precepts,  gods    may  enter  the  Paths,   but 
only  human  beings  can  attain  to  Arahatta  and  Nibbana. 

70 


Destruction  of  the  Sakyas 

to  seek  the  Buddha's  forgiveness,  for  he  knew  that  the 
Master  felt  no  ill-will  toward  him.  His  disciples  en- 
deavoured to  dissuade  him,  knowing  that  the  Buddha 
would  not  see  him:  but  he  had  himself  conveyed  in  a 
palanquin  to  the  Jetavana  monastery.  The  Bhikkhus 
informed  Buddha  of  his  approach,  but  the  Master  answered: 
"  He  will  not  see  the  Buddha :  for  his  crimes  are  so  great 
that  ten,  or  a  hundred,  or  even  a  thousand  Buddhas  could 
not  help  him."  When  they  reached  the  monastery,  the 
disciples  of  Devadatta  laid  down  the  palanquin :  and  then, 
despite  his  weakness,  Devadatta  rose  and  stood.  But  no 
sooner  did  his  feet  touch  the  ground,  than  flames  arose 
from  the  lowest  hell,  and  wrapped  him  in  their  folds,  at 
first  his  feet,  then  his  middle,  and  then  his  shoulders. 
Then  in  terror  he  cried  aloud :  "Save  me,  my  children,  I 
am  the  cousin  of  the  Buddha.  O  Buddha,  though  I  have 
done  so  much  against  thee,  for  the  sake  of  our  kinship 
save  me ! "  And  he  repeated  the  formula  of  taking  refuge 
in  the  Buddha,  the  norm,  and  the  order.  By  this  he 
received  the  help  of  the  Three  Gems  at  last,  and  in  a 
future  birth  he  will  become  the  Private  Buddha  Sattisara, 
notwithstanding  he  now  went  to  hell  and  received  a 
body  of  fire. 

Now  King  Ajatasattu,  who  had  murdered  his  father,  felt 
the  pangs  of  conscience.  He  found  no  comfort  in  the 
doctrines  of  the  six  heretical  teachers  who  were  the  Lord's 
opponents.  And  then,  on  the  advice  of  his  physician  Jivaka 
— as  related  previously — he  sought  the  Buddha  himself,  and 
heard  his  teaching  and  became  a  convert  to  the  true  faith. 

Destruction  of  the  Sakyas 

Not  long  after  this,  in  the  seventh  year  of  Ajatasattu's 

reign,  the  son  of  the  king  of  Kosala  dethroned  his  father 

71 


Buddha  &"  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

and,  to  revenge  himself  for  a  slight  received,  he  marched 
on  Kapilavatthu.  Almost  the  whole  of  the  Sakya  clan 
was  destroyed  in  the  ensuing  war,  while  the  party  of  the 
Kosalas  perished  in  a  great  flood. 

When    the  Lord  had   reached  his  seventy-ninth  year — 
being  the  forty-fifth  year  following  the  Enlightenment — 
Ajatasattu    undertook    an    unsuccessful    war    upon    the 
Vajjians  of  Vesali.     The  Buddha  was  consulted  upon  the 
likelihood  of  victory,  and  in  this  connection  we  are  in- 
formed  what   is   the   Master's   view   of   polity,    for   he 
declares   that   he   himself   has  taught  the   Vajjians   the 
conditions  of  true  welfare,  and  as  he  is  informed  that  the 
Vajjians  are  continuing  to  observe  these  institutions,  he 
foretells  that  they  will  not  suffer  defeat.     And  these  con- 
ditions are  stated  in   the   following   terms :    "  So   long, 
Ananda,  as  the  Vajjians  meet  together  in  concord,  and 
rise  in  concord,  and  carry  out  their  undertakings  in  con- 
cord— so  long  as  they  enact  nothing  already  established, 
abrogate  nothing  that  has  been  already  enacted,  and  act 
in  accordance  with  the  ancient  institutions  of  the  Vajjians, 
as  established  in  former  days — so  long  as  they  honour  and 
esteem  and  revere  the  Vajjian  elders,  and  hold  it  a  point 
of  duty  to  hearken  to  their  words — so  long  as  no  women 
or  girls  belonging  to  their  clans  are  detained  among  them 
by  force  or  abduction — so  long  as  they  honour  and  esteem 
and  revere  and  support  the  Vajjian  shrines  in  town  or 
country,  and  allow  not  the  proper  offerings  and  rites,  as 
formerly  given  and  performed,  to  fall  into  desuetude — so 
long  as  the  rightful  protection,  defence,  and  support  shall 
be  fully  provided  for  the  Arahats  amongst  them,  so  that 
Arahats  from  a  distance  may  enter  the  realm,  and  the 
Arahats   therein   may   live    at   ease — so   long   may   the 
Vajjians  be  expected  not  to  decline,  but  to  prosper." 
72 


Destruction  of  the  Sakyas 

Following  upon  this  pronouncement  the  Master  in  like 
manner  assembled  the  Brethren,  and  set  forth  forty-one  con- 
ditions of  welfare  of  a  religious  Order,  of  which  conditions 
several  relating  to  concord  and  to  the  observance  and  main- 
tenance of  existing  regulations  and  obedience  and  respect  to 
elders  are  identical  with  those  which  are  oriven  for  the  secular 
society.  Amongst  others  we  may  note  the  following : 
"  So  long,  O  Bhikkhus  ...  as  the  Brethren  delight  in  a 
life  of  solitude  .  .  .  shall  not  engage  in,  be  fond  of,  or  be 
connected  with  business  .  .  .  shall  not  stop  on  their  way 
to  Nibbana  because  they  have  attained  to  any  lesser  thing 
.  .  .  shall  exercise  themselves  in  mental  activity,  search 
after  truth,  energy,  joy,  peace,  earnest  contemplation,  and 
equanimity  of  mind  .  .  .  shall  exercise  themselves  in  the 
realization  of  the  ideas  of  the  impermanency  of  all 
phenomena,  bodily  or  mental,  the  absence  of  every  soul 
.  .  .  shall  live  among  the  Arahats  in  the  practice,  both 
in  public  and  in  private,  of  those  virtues  which  are  pro- 
ductive of  freedom  and  praised  by  the  wise,  and  are 
untarnished  by  desire  of  a  future  life  or  the  faith  in  the 
efficacy  of  outward  acts  .  .  .  shall  live  among  the  Arahats, 
cherishing,  both  in  public  and  private,  that  noble  and 
saving  insight  which  leads  to  the  complete  destruction  of 
the  sorrow  of  him  who  acts  according  to  it — so  long  may 
the  Brethren  be  expected  not  to  decline,  but  to  prosper." 
And  at  Rajagaha,  on  the  Vulture's  Peak,  the  Master 
taught  the  Brethren,  and  again  at  Nalanda  in  the  same 
manner.  "  Such  and  such  is  upright  conduct ;  such  and 
such  is  earnest  contemplation ;  such  and  such  is  intelli- 
gence.^    Great  becomes  the  fruit,  great  the  advantage  of 

^  Slla,  samddhi,  and  pafind,  something  like  the  '  works,'  '  faith,'  and 
'  reason '  of  Christianity.  The  formula  above  quoted  appears  repeatedly 
as  a  familiar  summary  of  the  Buddha's  discourse. 

7Z 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

earnest  contemplation,  when  it  is  set  round  with  upright 
conduct.  Great  becomes  the  fruit,  great  the  advantage 
of  intellect,  when  it  is  set  round  with  earnest  contempla- 
tion. The  mind,  set  round  with  intelligence,  is  set  quite 
free  from  the  Intoxications,  that  is  to  say,  from  the  In- 
toxication of  Sensuality,  from  the  Intoxication  of  Becoming, 
from  the  Intoxication  of  Delusion,  from  the  Intoxication 
of  Ignorance." 

T/ie  gift  of  a  garden  by  Ambapdll 
Then  the  Master  proceeded  to  Vesall.  At  this  time,  also, 
there  was  dwelling  in  the  town  of  Vesali  a  beautiful  and 
wealthy  courtesan  whose  name  was  Ambapali,  the  Mango- 
girl.  It  was  reported  to  her  that  the  Blessed  One  had 
come  to  Vesali  and  was  halting  at  her  Mango  Grove. 
Immediately  she  ordered  her  carriages  and  set  out  for  the 
grove,  attended  by  all  her  train;  and  as  soon  as  she 
reached  the  place  where  the  Blessed  One  was,  she  went 
up  toward  him  on  foot,  and  stood  respectfully  aside; 
and  the  Blessed  One  instructed  and  gladdened  her  with 
religious  discourse.  And  she,  being  thus  instructed  and 
gladdened,  addressed  the  Blessed  One  and  said :  "  May 
the  Master  do  me  the  honour  to  take  his  meal  with  all 
the  Brethren  at  my  house  to-morrow."  And  the  Blessed 
One  gave  consent  by  silence.  Ambapali  bowed  down 
before  him  and  went  her  way.^ 

Now  the  Licchavi  princes  of  Vesali  also  came  to  know 
that  the  Blessed  One  had  come  to  the  town,  and  they  too 
proceeded   to   the  Mango  Grove  where  he  was  halting. 

^  The  picture  of  the  wealthy  and  truly  pious  courtesan,  '  gladdened  by 
religious  discourse,'  remains  true  to  Indian  life  in  old-fashioned  cities 
even  at  the  present  day.  The  whole  episode  exhibits  a  beautiful 
tolerance,  recalling  the  like  stories  of  the  Christian  Magdalene-  For 
Ambapali's  '  Psalm,'  see  p.  285  seq. 

74 


The  last  Retreat 

And  as  they  went  they  met  with  Ambapali  returning,  and 
she  drove  up  against  them  axle  to  axle,  and  wheel  to 
wheel,  so  that  they  all  exclaimed:  "How  comes  it, 
Ambapali,  that  thou  drivest  up  against  us  thus?"  "My 
Lords,"  she  made  answer,  "  I  have  just  invited  the 
Blessed  One  and  his  Brethren  for  their  to-morrow's  meal." 
Then  the  princes  replied :  "  O,  Ambapali,  give  up  this 
meal  to  us  for  the  sum  of  a  hundred  thousand."  "  My 
Lords,"  she  said,  "if  you  were  to  offer  to  me  all  Vesali 
with  its  subject  territory,  I  would  not  give  up  so  honour- 
able a  feast."  Then  the  Licchavis  cast  up  their  hands 
and  exclaimed:  "We  are  outdone  by  the  Mango-girl!  " 
and  they  went  on  their  way  to  the  Mango  Grove.  And 
when  they,  too,  had  greeted  the  Blessed  One  and  had 
hearkened  to  his  instruction,  they  addressed  the  Master 
and  said:  "May  the  Blessed  One  do  us  the  honour  to 
take  his  meal,  with  all  the  Brethren,  at  our  house 
to-morrow."  But  the  Buddha  replied:  "O,  Licchavis, 
I  have  promised  to  dine  to-morrow  with  Ambapali  the 
courtesan."  And  again  the  princes  exclaimed :  "  We  are 
outdone  by  the  Mango-girl ! " 

The  next  day  Ambapali  served  the  Lord  and  all  the 
Brethren  with  her  own  hands,  and  when  they  would  eat 
no  more  she  called  for  a  low  stool  and  sat  down  beside 
the  Master  and  said:  "Lord,  I  make  a  gift  of  this 
mansion  to  the  Order  of  which  thou  art  the  chief."  And 
the  Blessed  One  accepted  the  gift ;  and  after  instructing 
and  gladdening  Ambapali  with  religious  discourse,  he 
rose  from  his  seat  and  went  his  way. 

The  last  Retreat 

From  Vesali  the  Master  went  to  the  neighbouring  village 

of  Beluva,  where  he  spent  the  last  Retreat.     There  a  severe 

75 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

sickness  came  upon  him.    But  the  Exalted  One,  considering 
that  his  time  was  not  yet  come,  and  that  it  was  not  right 
that  he  should  pass  away  without  taking  leave  of  the 
Order,  "by  a  great  effort  of  the  will  bent  that  sickness 
down  again,  and  kept  his  hold  on  life  till  the  time  he 
fixed  upon  should  come :  and  the  sickness  abated  upon  him." 
Now  when  he  had  quite  recovered,  he  came  out  from  his 
lodging,  and  sat  down  upon  a  seat,  and  there  Ananda 
came  to  him  and  saluted  him  and  said :  "  I  have  beheld. 
Lord,  how  the  Exalted  One  was  in  health,  and  I  have 
beheld  how  the  Exalted  One  had  to  suffer.     And  though 
at  the  sight  of  the  sickness  of  the  Exalted  One  my  body 
became  weak  as  a  creeper,  and  the  horizon  became  dim  to 
me,  and  my  faculties  were  no  longer  clear,  yet  notwith- 
standing I  took  some  little  comfort  from  the  thought  that 
the  Exalted  One  would  not  pass  away  until  at  least  he  had 
left  instructions  as  touching  the  Order," 
"What  then,  Ananda,"  said  the  Buddha,  "does  the  Order 
expect  that  of  me?     I  have  preached  the  truth  without 
making   any   distinction   between   exoteric   and   esoteric 
doctrine;  for  in  respect  of  the  truths,  Ananda,  He-who- 
has-thus-attained  has  no  such  thing  as  the  closed  fist  of  a 
teacher,  who  keeps  some  things  back.     Surely,  Ananda, 
should  there  be  anyone  who  harbours  the  thought,  '  It  is  I 
who  will  lead  the  brotherhood,'  or  'the  Order  is  depen- 
dent upon  me,'  it  is  he  who  should  lay  down  instructions 
in  any  matter  concerning  the  Order.     Now  He-who-has- 
thus-attained,  Ananda,  thinks  not  that  it  is  he  who  should 
lead  the  brotherhood,  or  that  the  Order  is  dependent  upon 
him.     Why   then   should   he   leave   instructions   in   any 
matter  concerning  the  Order?     I  too,  O  Ananda,  am  now 
grown  old,  and  full  of  years,  my  journey  is  drawing  to  its 
close,  I  have  reached  my  sum  of  days,  I  am  turning  eighty 
76 


The  last  Retre  t 

years  of  age;  and  just  as  a  worn-out  cart,  Ananda,  can  be 
kept  going  only  with  the  help  of  thongs,  so,  methinks,  the 
body  of  Him-who-has-thus-attained  can  only  be  kept 
going  by  bandaging  it  up.  It  is  only,  Ananda,  when  the 
Tathagata,  by  ceasing  to  attend  to  any  outward  thing, 
becomes  plunged  by  the  cessation  of  any  separate  sensation 
in  that  concentration  of  heart  which  is  concerned  with  no 
material  object — it  is  only  then  that  the  body  of  Him-who- 
has-thus-attained  is  at  ease. 

"  Therefore,  O  Ananda,  be  ye  lamps  unto  yourselves.     Be 
ye  a  refuge  to  yourselves.     Betake  yourselves  to  no  external 
refuge.     Hold  fast  to  the  Truth  as  a  lamp.     Hold  fast  as 
a  refuge  to  the  Truth.     Look  not  for  refuge  to  anyone 
besides  yourselves.  .  .  .     And  whosoever,  Ananda,  either 
now  or  after  I  am  dead,  shall  be  a  lamp  unto  themselves, 
shall  betake  themselves  to  no  external  refuge,  but  holding 
fast  to  the  Truth  as  their  lamp,  and  holding  fast  as  their 
refuge  to  the  Truth,  shall  look  not  for  refuge  to  any- 
one besides  themselves — it  is  they,  Ananda,  among  my 
Bhikkhus  who  shall  reach  the  very  topmost  Height! — 
but  they  must  be  anxious  to  learn."  ^ 
Upon  another  occasion  the  Master  walked  with  Ananda 
to  the  Capala  shrine:  and    he   began   to    speak    of  his 
coming  death.     And  when  Ananda  was  grieved,  and  would 
have  besought  him  to  remain  on  earth,  he  said : 
"But  now,  Ananda,  have  I  not  formerly  declared  to  you 
that  it  is  in  the  very  nature  of  all  things,  near  and  dear 
unto  us,  that  we  must  divide  ourselves  from  them,  leave 
them,  sever  ourselves  from  them?     How,  then,  Ananda, 
can  this  be  possible — whereas  anything  whatever  born. 


1  <■ 


This  noble  passage — I  quote  the  translation  of  Professor  Rhys  Davids 
— expresses  with  admirable  literary  art  the  pure  individualism  of  Buddhist 
thought,  here  so  nearly  akin  to  that  of  Whitman  and  Nietzsche. 

11 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

brought  into  being,  and  organized,  contains  within  itself 
the  inherent  necessity  of  dissolution — how  then  can  this  be 
possible  that  such  a  being  should  not  be  dissolved  ?  No 
such  condition  can  exist !  And,  Ananda,  that  which  has 
been  relinquished,  cast  away,  renounced,  rejected,  and 
abandoned  by  the  Tathagata — the  remaining  sum  of  life 
surrendered  by  him — verily  with  regard  to  that,  the  word 
has  gone  forth  from  the  Tathagata,  saying :  '  The 
passing  away  of  Him-who-has-thus-attained  shall  take 
place  before  long.  At  the  end  of  three  months  from  this 
time  the  Tathagata  will  die ! '  That  the  Tathagata  for 
the  sake  of  living  should  repent  him  again  of  that  saying 
— this  can  no  wise  be ! " 

Thereafter  the  Buddha  set  out  with  Ananda  to  go  to  the 
Kutagara  Hall  in  the  Great  Forest.  And  being  arrived 
there,  the  Brethren  were  assembled,  and  the  Buddha 
exhorted  them,  and  made  public  announcement  of  his 
coming  death.  "  Behold,  now,  O  Brethren,  I  exhort  you, 
saying :  '  All  component  things  must  grow  old.  Work 
out  your  salvation  with  diligence.  The  final  extinction 
of  the  Tathagata  will  take  place  before  long.  At  the 
end  of  three  months  from  this  time  the  Tathagata  will 
die!"* 

T/ie  Last  Meal 

Thereafter  the  Buddha  proceeded  to  Para,  and  he  halted 

at   the   Mango    Grove  of    Cunda,  an   hereditary   smith. 

And  when  this  was  reported  to  Cunda  he  hastened  to 

the  grove;  there  the  Buddha  instructed  and  gladdened 

him    with    religious    discourse.     And    he    invited    the 

Master  and  the   Brethren  to  dine  at  his  house   on   the 

morrow. 

Early  in  the  morning  Cunda  the  smith  prepared  sweet 

78 


Conversion  of  Pukkusa 

rice  and  cake  and  a  dish  of  pork :  ^  and  he  announced  the 
hour  to  the  Exalted  One.  And  he,  taking  his  bowl, 
proceeded  to  the  house  of  Cunda  the  smith,  and  partook 
of  the  meal  prepared,  and  afterward  he  instructed  and 
gladdened  Cunda  the  smith  with  religious  discourse. 
But  when  the  Exalted  One  had  partaken  of  the  meal 
prepared  by  Cunda  the  smith,  there  fell  upon  him  a  dire 
sickness,  the  disease  of  dysentery  and  sharp  pain  came 
upon  him,  even  unto  death.  But  the  Exalted  One,  mind- 
ful and  self-possessed,  bore  it  without  complaint,  and 
when  he  was  a  little  relieved  he  said  to  Ananda:  "  Come, 
Ananda,  let  us  go  on  to  Kusinara."  "Even  so,  lord," 
said  the  venerable  Ananda. 

Now  the  Exalted  One  turned  aside  from  the  path  to  the 
foot  of  a  certain  tree,  and  said  to  Ananda,  "  Fold,  I  pray 
you,  Ananda,  the  robe  in  four,  and  spread  it  out  for  me. 
I  am  weary,  Ananda,  and  must  rest  awhile."  "  Even  so, 
lord,"  said  the  venerable  Ananda.  And  when  he  was 
seated  he  asked  for  water,  and  Ananda  brought  it,  from  a 
neighbouring  stream — and  he  found  the  water  of  the 
stream  was  running  clear,  notwithstanding  that  a  caravan 
of  five  hundred  carts  had  just  passed  the  ford. 

Conversion  of  Pukkusa 

Immediately  after  this  there  passed  by  a  young  man,  by 
name  Pukkusa,  a  disciple  of  Alara  Kalama.  And  he 
related  to  the  Buddha  how  upon  a  certain  occasion  this 
Alara  Kalama  had  been  sitting  beside  the  road,  and  was 
so  absorbed  in  meditation  that  five  hundred  carts  passed 
him  by,  so  nearly  that  even  his  robe  was  sprinkled  with 
the  dust:  and  a  certain  man  was  so  much  impressed  by 

^  Or  perhaps  truffles.  But  there  is  nothing  contrary  to  Buddhist  practice 
in  eating  flesh  prepared  and  offered  by  others. 

79 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

this  profound  abstraction  that  he  became  Alara's  disciple. 
Upon  hearing  this  story  the  Buddha  replied  by  relating 
an  occasion  of  even  greater  abstraction,  on  his  own  part, 
when,   as  he  was    walking   to    and    fro    upon  a    certain 
threshing-floor   at  Atuma,    the   rain    fell   and   lightning 
flashed,  and  two  peasants  and  four  men  were  killed  by  a 
thunderbolt — and  yet  though    conscious  and  awake,  he 
neither  saw  nor  heard  the  storm :  and  upon  that  occasion 
in  like  manner  a   certain   man  was   so  much   impressed 
by  the  Master's  abstraction  that  he  became  a  disciple. 
Upon   hearing   this  relation,    Pukkusa's   faith  in  Alara 
Kalama   faded   away,   and    he  resorted  to  the   Exalted 
One,    and   to   the  Law  and  to  the  Brotherhood  as  his 
refuge,  and  requested  the  Exalted  One  to  accept  him  as  a 
lay  disciple.     And  he  sent  for  two  robes  of  cloth  of  gold 
and  presented  them  to  the  Master,  and  so  went  his  way. 
But  when  Ananda  folded  the  robes  and  the  Master  wore 
them,  the  golden  cloth  seemed  to  have  lost  its  brightness 
— and    this    was    because    whenever    One-who-has-thus 
attained   attains   to   Perfect  Enlightenment,    as  also  on 
the  day  when  he  passes  away,   the  colour  of  his  skin 
becomes  exceeding  bright.     "  And  now,"  said  the  Master, 
"the  utter  passing   away  of  Him-who-has-thus-attained, 
will  take  place  at  the  third  watch  of  this  night  in  the 
Sala-grove  of  the  Mallians.     Come,  Ananda,  let  us  go  on 
to   the   river  Kakuttha."     "  Even   so,    lord ! "  said   the 
venerable  Ananda. 

The  Exalted  One  went  down  into  the  water  of  the  river 
Kakuttha,  and  bathed  and  drank;  and  then,  taking  his 
seat  upon  the  bank,  he  spoke  with  Ananda  concerning 
Cunda  the  smith,  that  none  should  impute  the  least 
blame  to  him  because  the  Master  died  after  receiving  the 
last  meal  at  his  hands.  On  the  contrary,  he  said,  there 
80 


The  Master's  Death 

are  two  offerings  of  food  which  are  supremely  precious — 
that  which  is  given  immediately  before  One-who-has-thus- 
come  attains  to  Perfect  Insight,  and  the  other  before  his 
utter  passing  away:  and  "there  has  been  laid  up  to 
Cunda  the  smith  a  kamma  redounding  to  length  of  life, 
good  birth,  good  fortune  and  good  fame,  and  to  the 
inheritance  of  heaven  and  of  sovereign  power;  and  there- 
fore let  not  Cunda  the  smith  feel  any  remorse." 

The  Master  s  Death 

Then  the  Exalted  One  said  to  Ananda :  "  Come,  Ananda, 
let  us  go  on  to  the  Sala-grove  of  the  Mallas,  on  the 
further  side  of  the  river  Hiranyavatl."  And  when  they 
were  come  there,  he  said:  "Spread  over  for  me,  I  pray 
you,  Ananda,  the  couch  with  its  head  to  the  north,  between 
the  Twin  Sala  trees.  I  am  weary,  Ananda,  and  would  lie 
down."  "  Even  so,  lord !  "  said  the  venerable  Ananda. 
And  the  Exalted  One  laid  himself  down  on  his  rieht  side, 
with  one  leg  resting  on  the  other;  and  he  was  mindful 
and  self-possessed. 

And  now  there  came  to  pass  certain  marvels,  and  the 
Master  spoke  of  these  to  Ananda,  and  said :  "  The  twin 
Sala  trees  are  all  one  mass  of  bloom  with  flowers  out  of 
season ;  all  over  the  body  of  Him-who-has-thus-attained, 
these  drop  and  sprinkle  and  scatter  themselves,  out  of 
reverence  for  the  successors  of  the  Buddhas  of  old.  And 
heavenly  music  sounds  in  the  sky,  out  of  reverence  for 
the  successors  of  the  Buddhas  of  old.  But  it  is  not 
thus,  Ananda,  that  He-who-has-thus-attained  is  rightly 
honoured,  and  reverenced.  But  the  brother  or  the  sister, 
the  devout  man  or  woman  who  continually  fulfils  all  the 
greater  and  lesser  duties,  who  is  correct  in  life,  walking 
according  to  the  precepts — it  is  he  who  rightly  honours 

F  8i 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

and  reverences  the  Tathagata.  And  therefore,  Ananda, 
be  ye  constant  in  the  fulfilment  of  the  greater  and  the 
lesser  duties,  and  be  ye  correct  in  life,  walking  according 
to  the  precepts;  and  thus,  Ananda,  should  it  be  taught." 
Then  the  Buddha  addressed  Ananda,  and  said  to  him 
that  he  saw  a  great  host  of  the  gods  assembled  together 
to  behold  the  Tathagata  upon  the  night  of  his  final 
passing  away :  and  a  host  of  spirits  of  the  air  and  of  the 
earth,  "  of  worldly  mind,  who  dishevel  their  hair  and 
weep,  who  stretch  forth  their  arms  and  weep,  who  fall 
prostrate  on  the  ground,  and  roll  to  and  fro  in  anguish 
at  the  thought  'Too  soon  will  the  Exalted  One  pass 
away !  Too  soon  will  the  Exalted  One  die !  Too  soon 
will  the  Eye  in  the  world  pass  away ! ' "  "  But," 
the  Master  continued,  "the  spirits  who  are  free  from 
passion  bear  it  calm  and  self-possessed,  mindful  of 
the  saying — '  Impermanent,  indeed,  are  all  component 
things.' " 

And  the  Master  made  mention  of  four  places  that  should 
be  visited  by  the  clansmen  with  feelings  of  reverence — 
the  place  where  the  Tathagata  was  born,  the  place  where 
he  attained  Supreme  Enlightenment,  the  place  where  the 
kingdom  of  righteousness  was  established,  and  the  place 
where  the  Tathagata  utterly]  passed  away :  "  and  they, 
Ananda,  who  shall  die  while  they,  with  believing  heart, 
arejourneying  on  such  a  pilgrimage,  shall  be  reborn  after 
death,  when  the  body  shall  dissolve,  in  the  happy  realms 
of  heaven." 

When  Ananda  enquired  what  should  be  done  with  the 
remains  of  the  Tathagata,  he  answered :  "  Hinder  not 
yourselves,  Ananda,  by  honouring  the  remains  of  Him- 
who-has-thus-attained.  Be  zealous,  I  beseech  you,  Ananda, 
on  your  own  behalf  1  Devote  yourselves  to  your  own  good ! 
82 


The  Master's  Death 

There  are  lay  disciples  who  will  do  due  honour  to  the 
remains  of  the  Tathagata." 

Now  Ananda  had  not  yet  attained  to  Arahatta,  he  was 
still  a  student,  and  he  went  away  to  the  monastery,  and 
stood  leaning  against  the  lintel  of  the  door,  weeping  at 
the  thought  '  Alas !  I  remain  still  but  a  learner,  one  who 
has  yet  to  work  out  his  own  perfection.  And  the  Master 
is  about  to  pass  away — he  who  is  so  kind ! '  Then  the 
Exalted  One  summoned  the  Brethren  and  said,  "  Where 
now,  brethren,  is  Ananda?"  and  they  answered:  "The 
venerable  Ananda,  lord,  has  gone  into  the  monastery,  and 
is  leaning  against  the  lintel  of  the  door,  and  weeping  at 
the  thought  '  Alas !  I  remain  still  but  a  learner,  one  who 
has  yet  to  work  out  his  own  perfection.  And  the  Master 
is  about  to  pass  away — he  who  is  so  kind  ! '  "  Then  the 
Exalted  One  called  a  certain  Brother  and  sent  him  to 
Ananda  with  the  message  :  "  Brother  Ananda,  the  Master 
calls  for  thee."  And  Ananda  came  accordingly,  and 
bowed  before  the  Exalted  One  and  took  his  seat  respect- 
fully. Then  the  Exalted  One  said :  "  Enough,  Ananda ! 
do  not  let  yourself  be  troubled ;  do  not  weep !  Have  I 
not  already,  on  former  occasions,  told  you  that  it  is  in  the 
very  nature  of  all  things  most  near  and  dear  unto  us  that 
we  must  divide  ourselves  from  them,  leave  them,  sever 
ourselves  from  them.  How,  then,  Ananda,  can  this  be 
possible — whereas  anything  whatever  born,  brought  into 
being,  and  organized,  contains  within  itself  the  inherent 
necessity  of  dissolution — how,  then,  can  this  be  possible, 
that  such  a  being  should  not  be  dissolved?  No  such 
condition  can  exist.  For  a  long  time,  Ananda,  you  have 
been  very  near  to  me  by  acts  of  love,  kind  and  good,  that 
never  varies,  and  is  beyond  all  measure.  You  have  done 
well,  Ananda !     Be  earnest  in  effort,  and  you  too  shall  be 

83 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

free  from  the  Intoxications  of  Sensuality,  of  Individuality, 
Delusion  and  Ignorance."    And  he  praised  the  able  service 
of  Ananda  before  the  whole  assembly. 
Then  the  Master  said  to  Ananda:  "Go  now  into  the 
village   of   Kusinara,   and   inform   the    Mallas   that   the 
Tathagata  is  about  to  pass  away,  to  the  end  that  they 
may  not  afterwards  reproach  themselves  by  saying :  '  In 
our  own  village  the  Tathagata  died,  and  we  took  not  the 
occasion  to  visit  the  Tathagata  in  his  last  hours.' "     And 
the  Mallas  of  Kusinara,  with  their  young  men  and  maidens 
and  wives  were  grieved  and  saddened,  and  betook  them- 
selves to  the  Sala  Grove  where  the  Buddha  was  lying. 
And  Ananda  presented  them  to  the  Master,  family  by 
family,  in  the  first  watch  of  the  night. 
Now  there  was  at  this  time  a  wanderer  of  the  name  of 
Subhadda,  to    whom   the    Buddha's    approaching   death 
was   made   known:  and    he   desired   to  speak  with  the 
Master,  for  the  dissipation  of  his  doubt.     To  this  end  he 
approached  Ananda :  but  he  refused  access  to  the  Master, 
saying,  "  The  Exalted  One  is  weary,  do  not  trouble  him !  " 
But  the  Exalted  One  overheard  what  was  said,  and  desired 
that  Subhadda  should  be  given  access :  for  he  knew  that 
the  questions  to  be  asked  were  sincere,  and  that  Subhadda 
would  understand  the  answers.     And  this  was  what  Sub- 
hadda  sought   to   know — whether  the   leaders   of  other 
schools  of  thought,  the  masters  of  other  congregations, 
such   as   Nigantha   Nataputta,    or    Sanjaya    the   former 
teacher  of  Sariputta  and  Mogallana,   esteemed  as  good 
men  by  many,  had,  as  they  claimed,  attained  a  true  under- 
standing of  things,  or  had  some  of  them  so  attained,  and 
not  others?     And  the  Exalted  One  declared  :  "  In  whatso- 
ever doctrine  and  discipline,  Subhadda,  the  Ariyan  Eight- 
fold Path  is  not  found,  there  is  not  found  any  man  of  true 
84 


The  Master's  Death 

sainthood,  either  of  the  first,  the  second,  the  third,  or  the 
fourth  degree.     But  in  that  Doctrine  and   Discipline  in 
which  is  found  the  Ariyan  Eightfold  Path,  there  are  men 
of  true  sainthood,  of  all  the  four  degrees.     Void  are  the 
systems  of  other  teachers — void  of  true  saints.     But  in 
this  one,  Subhadda,  may  the  Brethren  live  the  Perfect 
Life,  that  the  world  be  not  bereft  of  Arahats."     And 
Subhadda's  doubt  being  thus  resolved,   he  resorted  to 
the  Exalted  One,  to  the  Law,  and  to  the  Congregation 
as  his  refuge,  and  he  was  received  into  the  Order :  and 
"ere  long  he  attained  to  that  supreme  goal  of  the  higher 
life  (Nibbana),  for  the  sake  of  which  the  clansmen  go  out 
from   all    and    every  household   gain    and  comfort,    to 
become   houseless    wanderers — yea,    that   supreme   goal 
did  he,  by  himself,  and  while  yet  in  this  visible  world, 
bring  himself  to  the  knowledge  of,  and  continue  to  realize, 
and  to  see  face  to  face  I     And  he  became  conscious  that 
birth  was  at  an  end,  that  the  higher  life  had  been  fulfilled, 
that  all  that  should  be  done  had  been  accomplished,  and 
that  after  this  present  life  there  would  be  no  beyond." 
Thus  it  was  that  the  venerable  Subhadda  became   yet 
another  among  the  Arahats ;  and  he  was  the  last  disciple 
whom  the  Exalted  One  himself  converted. 
Now  the  Exalted  One  addressed  the  Brethren  and  said 
thrice,  "  It  may  be,  Brethren,  that  there  may  be  doubt  or 
misgiving  in  the  mind  of  some  Brother  as  to  the  Buddha, 
or  the  doctrine,  or   the  path,  or  the  method.     Inquire, 
Brethren,  freely.     Do  not   have   to  reproach  yourselves 
afterwards  with  the  thought  :  '  our  teacher  was  face  to 
face  with  us,  and  we  could  not  bring  ourselves  to  inquire 
of  the  Exalted  One  when  we  were  face  to  face  with  him.'  " 
But  none  had  any  doubt  or  misgiving.     And  the  vener- 
able Ananda  said  to  the  Exalted  One :  "  How  wonderful 

85 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

a  thing  is  it,  lord,  and  how  marvellous  !  Verily  I  believe 
that  in  this  whole  assembly  of  the  Brethren  there  is  not 
one  Brother  who  has  any  doubt  or  misgiving  as  to  the 
Buddha,  or  the  doctrine,  or  the  path  or  the  method  !  " 
And  the  Buddha  answered :  "  It  is  out  of  the  fullness  of 
faith  that  thou  hast  spoken,  Ananda  !  But,  Ananda,  the 
Tathagata  knows  for  certain  that  in  his  whole  assembly  of 
the  Brethren  there  is  not  one  Brother  who  has  any  doubt  or 
misgiving  as  to  the  Buddha,  or  the  doctrine,  or  the  path, 
or  the  method  !  For  even  the  most  backward, ^  Ananda, 
of  all  these  five  hundred  brethren  has  become  converted, 
is  no  longer  liable  to  be  borne  in  a  state  of  suffering,  and 
is  assured  hereafter  of  attaining  the  Enlightenment  of 
Arahatta." 

Then  again,  the  Exalted  One  addressed  the  Brethren  and 
said  :  "  Decay  is  inherent  in  all  component  things !  Work 
out  your  salvation  with  diligence  !  " 

This  was  the  last  word  of  Him-who-has-thus-attained. 
.  Then  the  Exalted  One  entered  the  first  stage  of  Rapture, 
and  the  second,  third,  and  fourth:  and  rising  from  the 
fourth  stage,  he  entered  into  the  station  of  the  infinity  of 
space:  thence  again  into  the  station  of  the  infinity  of 
thought :  thence  again  into  the  station  of  emptiness :  then 
into  the  station  between  consciousness  and  unconsciousness : 
and  then  into  the  station  where  the  consciousness  both  of 
sensations  and  ideas  has  wholly  passed  away.  And  now 
it  seemed  to  Ananda  that  the  Master  had  passed  away  :  but 
he  entered  again  into  every  station  in  reverse  order  until  he 
reached  the  second  stage  of  Rapture,  and  thence  he  passed 
into  the  third  and  fourth  stages  of  Rapture.  And  passing 
out  of  the  last  stage  of  Rapture  he  immediately  expired. 

^  According  to  Buddhaghosha  this  refers  to  Ananda  himself,  and  was 

said  for  his  encouragement. 

86 


The  Funeral  Rites 

The  Distress  of  the  Brethren 

When  the  Exalted  One  died,  of  those  of  the  Brethren  who 
were  not  yet  free  from  the  passions,  some  stretched  out 
their  arms  and  wept,  and  some  fell  headlong  on  the  ground, 
rolling  to  and  fro  in  anguish  at  the  thought:  "Too  soon 
has  the  Exalted  One  died !  Too  soon  has  the  Happy- 
One  passed  away !  Too  soon  has  the  Eye  in  the  world 
passed  away."  But  those  of  the  Brethren  who  were  free 
from  the  passions,  to  wit,  the  Arahats,  bore  their  grief 
collected  and  composed  in  the  thought :  "  Impermanent 
are  all  component  things !  How  is  it  possible  that  they 
should  not  be  dissolved?  " 

And  the  Venerable  Anuruddha  exhorted  the  Brethren,  and 
said :  "  Enough,  my  Brethren  !  Weep  not,  nor  lament ! 
Has  not  the  Exalted  One  formerly  declared  this  to  us, 
that  it  is  in  the  very  nature  of  all  things  near  and  dear 
unto  us,  that  we  must  divide  ourselves  from  them,  leave 
them,  sever  ourselves  from  them  ?  How  then.  Brethren, 
can  this  be  possible — that  when  dead  anything  whatever 
born,  brought  into  being,  and  organized,  contains  within 
itself  the  inherent  necessity  of  dissolution — how  then  can 
this  be  possible  that  such  a  being  should  not  be  dissolved  ? 
No  such  condition  can  exist !  " 

The  Fitneral  Rites 

On  the  next  day  Ananda  informed  the  Mallas  of  Kusinara 
that  the  Exalted  One  had  passed  away  ;  and  they  too 
stretched  forth  their  arms  and  wept,  or  fell  prostrate  on 
the  ground,  or  reeled  to  and  fro  in  anguish  at  the 
thought:  "Too  soon  has  the  Exalted  One  died!"  And 
they  took  perfumes  and  garlands,  and  all  the  music  in 
Kusinara,  and  proceeded  to  the  Sala  Grove,  where  the 

87 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

body  of  the  Exalted  One  was  lying.     And  they  spent 
there  six  days  paying  honour  and  homage  to  the  remains 
of  the  Exalted  One,  with  dancing  and  hymns  and  music, 
and  with  garlands  and  perfumes.     On  the  seventh  day 
they  bore  the  body  of  the  Exalted  One  through  the  city 
and  out  by  the  Eastern  gate  to  the  shrine  of  the  Mallas, 
there  to  be  burnt  upon  the  pyre.     They  wrapped  the  body 
in  layers  of  carded  cotton  wool  and  woven  cloth,  and 
placed  it  in  a  vessel  of  iron,  and  that  again  in  another; 
and  building  a  funeral  pyre  of  perfumed  woods,  they  laid 
the  body  of  the  Exalted  One  upon  it.     Then  four  chief- 
tains of  the  Mallas  bathed  their  heads  and  clad  themselves 
in  new  garments  with  the  intention  of  setting  on  fire  the 
funeral  pyre.     But  lo,  they  were  not  able  to  set  it  burning. 
Now  the  reason  of   this   was   that  the  venerable  Maha 
Kassapa  was  then  journeying  from  Pava  to  Kusinara  with 
a  company  of  five  hundred  Brethren :  and  it  was  willed  by 
the  gods  that  the  pyre  should   not   take   fire  until  the 
venerable  Maha  Kassapa  together  with  these   Brethren 
had  saluted  the  feet  of  the  Master.     And  when  Maha 
Kassapa  came  to  the  place  of  the  funeral  pyre,  then  he 
walked  thrice  round  about  it  and  bowed  in  reverence  to 
the  feet  of  the  Exalted  One,  and  so  did  the  five  hundred 
Brethren.     And  when  this  was  ended,  the  funeral  pyre 
caught  fire  of  itself. 

And  what  was  burnt  was  the  flesh  and  the  fluids  of  the 
body,  and  all  the  wrappings,  and  only  the  bones  were  left 
behind ;  and  when  the  body  was  thus  burnt,  streams  of 
water  fell  from  the  sky  and  rose  up  from  the  ground  and 
extinguished  the  flames,  and  the  Mallas  also  extinguished 
the  fire  with  vessels  of  scented  water.  They  laid  the 
bones  in  state  in  the  Council  Hall  of  the  Mallas,  set  round 
with  a  lattice-work  of  spears  and  a  rampart  of  bows,  and 
88 


The  Funeral  Rites 

there  for  seven  days  they  paid  honour  and  reverence  to 
them  with  dancing  and  music  and  garlands  and  perfumes. 
Now  these  matters  were  reported  to  Ajatasattu,  and  to 
the    Licchavis    of   Vesali,  and    to   the  Sakyas   of  Kapi- 
lavatthu,  and  the  Bulis  of  Alakappa,  and  the  Koliyas  of 
Ramagama,  and  to  the  Brahman  of  Vethadipa ;  and  all 
these,   with   the  Mallas  of   Kusinara,  laid   claim  to  the 
remains  of  the  Exalted  One,  and  wished  to  erect  a  mound 
above  them,  and  to  celebrate  a  feast  of   honour.     The 
Mallas,  however,  saying  that  the  Exalted  One  had  died 
in  their  village,  refused  to  part  with  the  remains.     Then 
a  certain  Brahman  of  the  name  of  Dona  reminded  the 
assembled  chieftains  that  the  Buddha  was  wont  to  teach 
forbearance,  and  he  recommended  that  the  remains  should 
be   divided    into   eight   portions,  and  that  a  monument 
should  be  erected  by  each  of  those  who  laid  claim,  in 
their  several  territories ;  and  this  was  done  accordingly. 
Dona  himself  erected  a  monument  over  the  vessel  in 
which  the  remains  had  been  guarded,  and  the  Moriyas  of 
Pippalivana,  who  made  claim  to  a  share  when  the  dis- 
tribution had  already  been  made,  erected  a  mound  above 
the  ashes  of  the  fire.     And  thus  there  were  eight  monu- 
ments for  the  remains  of  the  Exalted  One,  and  one  other 
for  the  vessel,  and  another  for  the  ashes. 


89 


PART  II  :  THE  GOSPEL  OF  EARLY 
BUDDHISM 

/.  DHAMMA,   THE  DOCTRINE  AND 
DISCIPLINE 

Just,  O  Brethren,  as  the  wide  sea  has  but  one  taste,  the  taste 
of  salt,  so  also.  Brethren,  have  this  Doctrine  and  Discipline 
one  only  taste,  the  taste  of  Salvation. — Cullavagga  ix. 

TH  E  whole  of  the  doctrine  {d/mmma,  Sanskrit  dharma) 
of  Gautama  is  simply  and  briefly  capitulated  in  the 
Four  AriyanT ruths  {A rzyasaccdnz)  or  axioms:  That 
there  is  suffering  {Dukklia)^  that  it  has  a  cause  {Samtidaya)^ 
that  it  can  be  suppressed  (Nirodkd),  and  that  there  is  a  way 
to  accomplish  this  {Magga),  the  *  Path.'  This  represents 
the  application  of  current  medical  science  to  the  healing 
of  the  spiritually  sick.  The  good  physician,  seeing  Every- 
man in  pain,  proceeds  to  diagnosis :  he  reflects  upon  the 
cure,  and  commends  the  necessary  regime  to  the  patient 
— this  is  the  history  of  the  life  of  Gautama.  The  sick 
soul  knows  its  sickness  only  by  its  pain;  it  seeks  the 
cause  of  its  suffering,  and  the  assurance  of  a  remedy,  and 
asks  what  shall  it  do  to  be  saved — this  is  the  history  of 
those  who  take  refuge  in  the  Law  of  the  Buddha. 
Let  us  repeat  here  the  essential  part  of  Gautama's  first 
sermon :  ^ 

"  This,  O  monks,  is  the  Ariyan  Truth  of  Suffering :  Birth 
is  suffering,  old  age  is  suffering,  sickness  is  suffering, 
death  is  suffering,  to  be  united  with  the  unloved  is  suffer- 
ing, to  be  separated  from  the  loved  is  suffering,  not  to 
obtain  what  one  desires  is  suffering ;  in  short,  the  fivefold 
clinging  to  the  earth  is  suffering. 

^  Here  after  Oldenberg,  Buddha^  2nd  English  ed.,  p.  206,  with  a  few 

verbal  alterations. 

90 


Dukkha 

"  This,  O  monks,  is  the  Ariyan  Truth  of  the  Origin  of 
Suffering :  It  is  the  will  to  life  which  leads  from  birth  to 
birth,  together  with  lust  and  desire,  which  finds  gratification 
here  and  there;  the  thirst  for  pleasures,  the  thirst  for 
being,  the  thirst  for  power. 

"  This,  O  monks,  is  the  Ariyan  Truth  of  the  Extinction  of 
Suffering :  The  extinction  of  this  thirst  by  complete 
annihilation  of  desire,  letting  it  go,  expelling  it,  separating 
oneself  from  it,  giving  it  no  room. 

"  This,  O  monks,  is  the  Ariyan  Truth  of  the  Path  which 
leads  to  the  Extinction  of  Suffering:  It  is  this  sacred 
Eightfold  Path,  to-wit:  Right  Belief,  Right  Aspiration, 
Right  Speech,  Right  Living,  Right  Effort,  Right  Recol- 
lectedness.  Right  Rapture." 

It  is  the  first  division  of  the  Eightfold  Path,  Right  Belief, 
Views,  or  Faith,  which  constitute  the  Gospel  of  Buddha, 
the  Doctrine  of  Buddhism,  which  we  shall  now  set  forth 
systematically.  This  teaching  consists  in  a  knowledge  of 
the  world  and  of  man  "  as  they  really  are."  This  right 
knowledge  is  most  tersely  summarized  in  the  triple 
formula  of  Diikkha,  Anicca,  Anattd — Suffering,  Imper- 
manence,  Non-egoity.  The  knowledge  of  these  principles 
is  a  knowledge  of  The  Truth.^  Let  us  consider  them  in 
order  and  detail. 

Ditkkha 

The  existence  of  Suffering,  or  Evil,  is  the  very  raison- 

cCetre  of  Buddhism  : 

"  If  these  things  were   not  in  the  world,   my  disciples, 

the  Perfect  One,  the  holy  Supreme  Buddha,  would  not 

appear   in  the  world ;  the   law  and   the  doctrine   which 

the   Perfect    One   propounded  would    not   shine   in    the 

^  Majjhima  NikCiya^  i,  140. 

91 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

world.     What  three  things  are   they?     Birth,  old   age, 
and  death. 

"  Both  then  and  now,  says  the  Buddha  again,  just  this  do 
I  reveal :  Suffering  and  the  Extinction  of  Suffering." 
Diikkha  is  to  be  understood  both  as  symptom  and  as 
disease.  In  the  first  sense  it  includes  all  possible  physical 
and  mental  loss,  "all  the  meanness  and  agony  without 
end,"  suffering  and  imperfection  of  whatever  sort  to  which 
humanity  and  all  living  beings  (gods  not  excepted)  are 
subject.  In  the  second  sense  it  is  the  liability  to  ex- 
perience these  evils,  which  is  inseparable  from  individual 
existence. 

So  far  Gautama  has  put  forward  nothing  which  is  not 
obviously  a  statement  of  fact.  It  might,  indeed,  appear 
that  in  our  life  pain  is  compensated  for  by  pleasure,  and 
the  balance  must  indeed  be  exact  here,  as  between  all 
pairs  of  opposites.  But  as  soon  as  we  reflect,  we  shall 
see  that  pleasure  itself  is  the  root  of  pain,  for  "  Sorrow 
springs  from  the  flood  of  sensual  pleasure  as  soon  as 
the  object  of  sensual  desire  is  removed."  ^  In  the  words 
that  are  quoted  on  our  title-page :  Vraiement  comencent 
amours  en  ioye  et  fytiissent  en  dolours  ;  in  the  words  of 
Nietzsche,  "  Said  ye  ever  Yea  to  one  joy  ?  O  my  friends, 
then  said  ye  Yea  also  unto  all  Woe." 
According  to  the  Dhammapada  : 

"  From  merriment  cometh  sorrow ;  from  merriment 
Cometh  fear.  Whosoever  is  free  from  merriment,  for 
him  there  is  no  sorrow :  whence  should  fear  come  to 
him  ?  From  love  cometh  sorrow ;  from  love  cometh 
fear.  Whosoever  is  free  from  love,  for  him  there  is  no 
sorrow  :  whence  should  come  fear  to  him  ?" 
But  not  only  is  pleasure  the  prelude  to  pain,  pleasure  is 
^  Visuddhi  Magga,  xvii. 
92 


Anicca 

pain  itself ;  again  in  the  words  of  Nietzsche,  "  Pleasure 
is  a  form  of  pain." 

For  there  is  for  ever  a  skeleton  at  the  feast :  happiness  in 
the  positive  sense,  joy  that  depends  on  contact  with  the 
source  of  pleasure  external  to  oneself,  cannot  be  grasped, 
it  cannot  endure  from  one  moment  to  another.  It  is  the 
vanity  of  vanities  to  cling  to  that  which  never  is,  but  is 
for  ever  changing;  and  those  who  realize  that  all  this 
world  of  our  experience  is  a  Becoming,  and  never  attains 
to  Being,  will  not  cling  to  that  which  cannot  be  grasped, 
and  is  entirely  void. 

Accordingly,  the  whole  of  Buddhist  psychology  is  directed 
to  an  analysis  of  consciousness,  directed  to  reveal  its  ever- 
changing  and  composite  character. 

Anicca 

Impermanence  is  the  inexorable,  fundamental  and  pitiless 
law  of  all  existence. 

"  There  are  five  things  which  no  Samana,  and  no 
Brahman,  and  no  god,  neither  Mara,  nor  Brahma,  nor 
any  being  in  the  universe,  can  bring  about.  What  five 
things  are  those  ?  That  what  is  subject  to  old  age 
should  not  grow  old,  that  what  is  subject  to  sickness 
should  not  be  sick,  that  what  is  subject  to  death 
should  not  die,  that  what  is  subject  to  decay  should 
not  decay,  that  what  is  liable  to  pass  away  should  not 
pass  away.  This  no  Samana  can  bring  about,  nor  any 
god,  neither  Mara,  nor  Brahma,  nor  any  being  in  the 
universe." 

Just  as  Brahmanical  thought  accepts  the  temporal  eter- 
nity of  the  Samsara,  an  eternal  succession  and  coincidence 
of  evolution  and  involution,  and  an  eternal  succession  of 
Brahmas,  past  and  future :  so  also  Gautama  lays  emphasis 

93 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

— and  more  special  emphasis,  perhaps — upon  the  eternal 
succession  of  Becoming.  The  following  stanza  has  indeed 
been  called  the  Buddhist  confession  of  faith,  and  it 
appears  more  frequently  than  any  other  text  in  Indian 
Buddhist  inscriptions : 

Of  those  conditions  which  spring  from  a  cause 
The  cause  has  been  told  by  Tathdgata  : 
And  the  manner  of  their  suppression 
The  great  Samand  has  likewise  taught. 

How  essential  in  Buddhism  is  the  doctrine  of  the  eternal 
succession  of  causes  appears  from  the  fact  that  it  is  often 
spoken  of  as  the  gospel : 

"  I  will  teach  you  the  Dhamma,"  says  Gautama,  "  That 
being  present,  this  becomes;  from  the  arising  of  that, 
this  arises.  That  being  absent,  this  does  not  become ; 
from  the  cessation  of  that,  this  ceases."  ^ 
We  read  again  that  "  Dhamma-analysis  is  knowledge 
concerning  conditions."  ^ 

What  he  taught  was  designed  to  avoid  the  two  extreme 
doctrines  of  realism  and  nihilism,  the  belief  in  pheno- 
menal being  and  the  belief  that  there  is  no  phenomenal 
process  at  all.  "  Everything  is :  this,  O  Kaccana,  is 
one  extreme  view.  Everything  is  not :  this  is  the  second 
extreme  view.  Avoiding  both  these  extremes,  the 
Tathagata  teaches  the  Norm  by  the  Mean."  This 
doctrine  of  the  Mean  asserts  that  everything  is  a 
Becoming,  a  flux  without  beginning  (first  cause)  or  end ; 
there  exists  no  static  moment  when  this  becoming 
attains  to  beinghood — no  sooner  can  we  conceive  it  by 

1  Majjhima  Nikdya,  ii,  32.  *   Vibhanga, 

94 


Anicca 

the  attributes  of  name  and  form,  than  it  has  trans- 
migrated or  changed  to  something  else.  In  place 
of  an  individual,  there  exists  a  succession  of  instants  of 
consciousness. 

"Strictly  speaking,  the  duration  of  the  life  of  a  living 
being  is  exceedingly  brief,  lasting  only  while  a  thought 
lasts.  Just  as  a  chariot  wheel  in  rolling  rolls  only  at  one 
point  of  the  tire,  and  in  resting  rests  only  at  one  point; 
in  exactly  the  same  way,  the  life  of  a  living  being  lasts 
only  for  the  period  of  one  thought.  As  soon  as  that 
thought  has  ceased,  the  living  being  is  said  to  have  ceased. 
*'  As  it  has  been  said : 

"The  being  of  a  past  moment  of  thought  has  lived,  but 
does  not  live,  nor  will  it  live. 

"  The  being  of  a  future  moment  of  thought  will  live,  but 
has  not  lived,  nor  does  it  live. 

"  The  being  of  the  present  moment  of  thought  does  live, 
but  has  not  lived,  nor  will  it  live."  ^ 

We  are  deceived  if  we  allow  ourselves  to  believe  that 
there  is  ever  a  pause  in  the  flow  of  becoming,  a  restino-, 
place  where  positive  existence  is  attained  for  even  the 
briefest  duration  of  time.  It  is  only  by  shutting  our  eyes 
to  the  succession  of  events  that  we  come  to  speak  of 
things  rather  than  of  processes.  The  quickness  or 
slowness  of  the  process  does  not  affect  the  generalization. 
Consider  a  child,  a  boy,  a  youth,  a  man,  and  an  old  man ; 
when  did  any  of  these  exist  ?  there  was  an  organism,  which 
had  been  a  babe,  and  was  coming  to  be  a  child ;  had  been 
a  child,  and  was  coming  to  be  a  boy;  and  so  on.  The 
seed  becomes  seedling,  and  seedling  a  tree,  and  the  tree 
lets  fall  its  seeds.  It  is  only  by  continuity,  by  watching 
the  process  of  Becoming  that  we  can  identify  the  old  man 
1   Fisudd/ii  Ma^ga,  Ch.  Yin. 

95 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

with  the  babe,  the  tree  with  the  seed ;  but  the  old  man  is 
not  (identical  with)  the  babe,  nor  the  tree  (with)  the  seed. 
The  substance  of  our  bodies,  and  no  less  the  constitution 
of  our  souls,  changes  from  moment  to  moment.  That  we 
give  to  such  individuals  a  name  and  form  is  a  pragmatic 
convention,  and  not  the  evidence  of  any  inner  reality. 
Every  existence  is  organic,  and  the  substance  of  its 
existence  is  a  continuity  of  changes,  each  of  which  is 
absolutely  determined  by  pre-existing  conditions. 
Why  is  this  law  of  causality  of  such  great  importance  for 
Gautama,  whose  doctrine  is  not  a  mental  gymnastic,  but 
"just  this:  Evil  and  the  Cessation  of  Evil"?  Because 
this  doctrine  is  precisely  the  physician's  diagnosis  of  the 
disease  of  Diikkha.  As  a  constitutional  disease,  it  is  set 
forth  in  the  well-known  series  of  the  Twelve  Niddnas^  the 
interconnection  of  which  is  spoken  of  as  the  Law  of 
Dependent  Origination  {Paticca-sannipdcla).  The  Twelve 
Nidanas,  afterwards  called  the  wheel  of  causation,  are 
repeated  in  no  less  than  ninety-six  Suttas;  and  the  im- 
portance of  the  series  arises  from  the  fact  that  it  is  at  once 
a  general  explanation  of  phenomena,  and  an  explanation 
of  the  special  phenomenon  of  Evil  in  which  the  Buddhist 
were  most  interested.  The  effect  of  the  series  is  to  show 
that  vimidjia^  the  consciousness  of  I,  does  not  reside  in  an 
eternal  soul,  but  is  a  contingent  phenomenon  arising  by 
way  of  cause  and  effect.  It  should  be  noted,  as  Professor 
Rhys  Davids  has  pointed  out,  that  the  value  of  the  series 
does  not  lie  in  the  fact  that  it  explains  Evil,  but  in  the 
fact  that  the  right  understanding  of  Causal  Origination  con- 
stitutes that  very  insight  by  which  the  source  of  Evil — 
consciousness  of  I  and  the  desires  of  the  I — is  destroyed. 
The  '  Wheel  of  Causation '  turns  as  follows :  ^ 

^  Majjhima  Nikaya,  i,  140, 
96 


Other  lives 
(past) 


This  present 
life 
and 


Other  lives 
(future) 


Anicca 

Ignorance  {avijja) 

Misperceptions  {sankhdra)  or  vain  imagin- 
ing, will  {cetana) 

Consciousness  (of  I,  etc.)  {mhhdna) 
Name  and  Form,  i.e.  Mind  and  Body, 

{iid7na-7'upa) 
Sense  organs  {sadayatand) 
Contact  {spassd) 
Emotion  {vedana) 
Craving  {tanha) 
Attachment  {updddnd) 

Coming-to-be  {bhavd) 
Rebirth  {jdii) 

Old  age  and  death,  sorrow,  lamentation, 
evil,  grief,  despair  (y^^mw^rrt;;/^;;/,  etc.) 


This  list,  wherever  it  occurs,  ends  with  the  formula  'Such 
is  the  uprising  of  this  entire  body  of  Evil.'  It  should  be 
noted  that  the  whole  series  of  terms  is  not  always  repeated, 
and  not  always  in  the  same  order;  these  are  rather  the 
spokes  of  a  wheel  than  its  circumference. 
If  we  now  ask  what  is  the  effect  and  what  cause,  it  is 
clear  that  Ignorance  lies  at  the  root  of  all.  From  Ignor- 
ance arises  the  thought  of  entity,  whereas  there  exists  but 
a  becoming;  from  the  thought  of  self  as  entity,  and  from 
the  desires  of  Me,  arises  life;  life  is  inseparable  from 
Evil. 

The  diagnosis  implies  the  cure;  it  is  the  removal  of  the 
conditions  which  maintain  the  pathological  state.  These 
conditions  which  maintain  Ignorance,  are  primarily 
Craving,  and  the  thought  of   I   and   Mine,   with  all  its 

G  97 


Buddha  &  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

implications  of  selfishness  and  superstition.  The  means  to 
accomplish  the  cure  are  set  forth  in  the  mental  and  moral 
discipline  of  the  Buddhist  '  Wanderers.' 

Anattd 

Practically  inseparable  from  the  doctrine  of  Anicca  is  that 
of  Anattd^  that  there  exists  no  changeless  entity  in  any 
thing,  and  above  all,  no  'eternal  soul'  in  man.  Ananda 
inquires  of  the  Buddha  : 

"  What  is  meant,  lord,  by  the  phrase,  The  world  is  empty?  " 
The  Buddha  replies:  "That  it  is  empty,  Ananda,  of 
a  self,  or  of  anything  of  the  nature  of  a  self.  And  what 
is  it  that  is  thus  empty  ?  The  five  seats  of  the  five  senses, 
and  the  mind,  and  the  feeling  that  is  related  to  mind :  all 
these  are  void  of  a  self  or  of  anything  that  is  self-like."  ^ 
Mental  states  are  phenomena  like  other  phenomena,  and 
nothing  substantial  such  as  a  soul  or  ego  lies  behind  them ; 
just  as  the  names  of  things  are  concepts.  The  favourite 
similes  are  drawn  from  natural  phenomena  and  from 
things  constructed,  such  as  a  river,  or  a  chariot.  If  you 
except  the  water,  the  sand,  the  hither  bank  and  the  further 
bank,  where  can  you  find  the  Ganges  ?  If  you  divide  the 
chariot  into  its  component  parts,  such  as  the  wheels,  the 
poles,  the  axle,  the  body,  the  seat,  and  so  forth,  what 
remains  of  the  chariot  but  a  name?^  In  the  same  way  it 
will  be  found  that  when  the  component  parts  of  con- 
sciousness are  analyzed,  there  is  no  residue;  the  individual 
maintains  a  seeming  identity  from  moment  to  moment, 
but  this  identity  merely  consists  in  a  continuity  of  moments 
of  consciousness,  it  is  not  the  absence  of  change. 
"  Like  a  river,"  says  a  modern  Buddhist,  "  which  still  main- 
tains one  constant  form,  one  seeming  identity,  though  not  a 

^  Satnyutta  Nikaya,  iv,  54.  ^  See  below,  p.  296. 

98 


Anatta 

single  drop  remains  to-day  of  all  the  volume  that  composed 
the  river  yesterday."  ^ 

It  is  of  the  utmost  importance  to  realize  this  truth,  because 
for  the  individual  possessed  with  the  notion  "  I  am  form ; 
form  belongs  to  the  I,"  "  through  the  changing  and  altera- 
tion of  form  arise  sorrow,  misery,  grief,  and  despair." 
The  simile  of  the  river  emphasizes  the  continuity  of  an 
ever-changing  identity.  Another  simile,  drawn  from 
sleep  and  dream,  emphasizes  the  intermittent  nature  of 
consciousness ;  the  ordinary  course  of  organic  existence, 
called  bhavanga-gati^  is  compared  to  the  flow  of  dream- 
less sleep;  consciousness  is  only  awakened  when  some 
external  stimulus  causes  a  vibration  in  the  normal  flow. 
The  complex  elements  of  conscious  existence  are  spoken 
of  by  the  Buddhists  in  two  ways — in  the  first  place  as 
Ndma-rupa^  literally  name  and  form,  that  is  to  say, 
'man's  nature  and  fleshly  substance';  and  in  the  second 
place,  as  the  Five  aggregates  {kkandka,  skandkd).  These 
two  or  five  embrace  the  whole  of  conscious  experience 
without  leaving  over  any  activity  to  be  explained  by  a 
*soul.'  The  relation  of  the  two  schemes  will  appear  from 
the  following  table : 

Mental  factor  Physical  factor 

1 .  Ndina-  (synonyms  :  viTmdna^  citta^  rupa 

7)iajio,  i.e.  consciousness,  heart, 
mind). 

2.  Vcdand,  sahndy  sankJidra^  viiuidna^ 

{i.e.  feeling,  perception,  will,  etc.,  inpa 

and  awareness). 

In  both  cases  nlpa  is  the  physical  organism  (not  '  form ' 

^  Anuruddha,   Compendium  of  Philosophy.      Introd.    Essay  by  S.    Z. 
Aung,  p.  9. 

99 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

in  a  philosophic  or  aesthetic  sense),  the  fleshly  nature ; 
Ndma  is  name  or  mind  ;  ndma  and  7upa^  name  (mere 
words)  and  body,  are  just  those  things  by  which  a  '  person,' 
in  fact  complex  and  variable,  appears  to  be  a  unity.  In 
the  second  group,  which  is  not,  like  the  first,  borrowed 
directly  from  the  Upanishads,  greater  stress  is  laid  on  the 
several  elements  of  the  mental  factor,  with  the  practical 
object  of  shutting  out  any  possible  loophole  for  the  intro- 
duction of  the  idea  of  a  mind  of  soul  as  an  unchanging 
unity. 

Vedand  is  'feeling,',  with  the  hedonistic  significance  of 
pleasant,  unpleasant,  and  neutral,  resulting  from  contact 
with  the  objects  of  sense,  and  itself  producing  tanhd^ 
craving  or  desire.  It  is  emphasized  that  '  there  is  no 
distinct  entity  that  feels,'  '  it  is  only  feeling  that  feels  or 
enjoys,'  and  this  'because  of  some  object  which  is  in 
causal  relation  to  pleasant  or  other  feeling '  (Buddha- 
ghosha).  Buddhist  thought  knows  no  subject,  and 
concentrates  its  attention  upon  the  object. 
Sannd  is  perception  of  all  kinds,  sensuous  or  mental,  that 
is  to  say,  'awareness  with  recognition,  this  being  expressed 
by  naming'  (Rhys  Davids). 

The  Sankhdras  form  a  complex  group,  including  cetand, 
or  will  (volition),^  and  a  series  of  fifty-one  coefficients  of 
any  conscious  state. 

ViTindna  is  '  any  awareness  of  mind,  no  matter  how 
general  or  how  abstract  the  content.' 

It  is  to  be  noted  that  the  terms  rilpa  and  vinndna  are 
used  in  a  more  restricted  sense  in  the  fivefold  classification 
than  when  used  to  embrace  the  whole  of  conscious  exist- 
ence.    The  rather  cumbrous  system  of  the  khandhas  was 

^  "  I  say  that  cetand  is  action  ;  thinking,  one  acts  by  deed,  word,  or 

thought." — Anguitara  Nikdya,  iii,  415. 

100 


The  Four  Paths 

later  on  replaced  by  a  division  into  citta,  mind,  and 
cctasikd,  mental  properties.  All  Indian  thinkers  are,  of 
course,  in  agreement  as  to  the  material,  organic  nature  of 
mind. 

For  the  serious  study  of  Buddhist  psychology  the  reader 
must  consult  either  of  Mrs  Rhys  Davids,  two  works  on 
this  subject.     All  that  need  be  emphasized  here  is  the 
practical  purpose  of  the  Buddhists  in  making  use  of  these 
classifications.     "  Why,"   says  Buddhaghosha,   "  did  the 
Exalted  One  say  there  were  five  Aggregates,  no  less  and 
no  more  ?     Because  these  not  only  sum  up  all  classes  of 
conditioned  things,  but  they  afford  no  foothold  for  soul 
and  the  animistic;   moreover,  they  include  all  other  classi- 
fications."    The   Buddhists  thus  appear   to   admit   that 
their  psychology  is  expressly  invented  to  prove  their  case. 
The    Buddhists   were,    of   course,   very   right  in   laying 
emphasis  on  the  complex   structure  of   the  ego — a  fact 
which  modern  pathological  and  psychical  research  increas- 
ingly brings  home  to  us — but  this  complexity  of  the  ego 
does  not  touch  the  question  of  the  Brahmanical  Atman, 
which  is,  'not  so,  not  so.'  ^ 

So  much,  then,  for  the  fundamental  statement  of  '  Right 
Views/ 

The  Four  Paths 

Frequent  mention   has  been   made   of  the  Four   Paths. 

This  is  a  fourfold  division  of  the  last  of  the  Four  Ariyan 

Truths.    The  Four  Paths,  or  rather  four  stages  of  the  one 

Path,  are  as  follows : 

1st.  Conversion,  entering  upon  the  stream,  which  follows 

from  companionship  with    the   good,  hearing    the  Law, 

enlightened    reflection,  or  the  practice  of  virtue.     This 

*  For  this  question  see  below,  p.  1 98  seq. 

lOI 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

depends  upon  a  recognition  of  the  F'our  Ariyan  Truths, 
and  is  subsequent  to  the  earliest  step  of  merely  taking 
refuge  in  the  Buddha,  the  Law,  and  the  Order,  a  formula 
which  is  repeated  by  every  professing  Buddhist,  including 
the  many  who  have  not  yet  entered  the  Paths.  The  First 
Path  leads  to  freedom  from  the  delusion  of  Egoity,  from 
doubt  regarding  the  Buddha  or  his  doctrines,  and  from 
belief  in  the  efficacy  of  rites  and  ceremonies. 
2nd.  The  Second  Path  is  that  of  those  who  will  only  once 
more  return  to  the  world,  and  in  that  next  birth  will  attain 
Final  Release.  In  this  Path  the  converted  individual, 
already  free  from  doubt  and  from  the  delusions  of  self 
and  of  ritualism,  is  able  to  reduce  to  a  minimum  the  car- 
dinal errors  of  lust,  resentment,  and  glamour. 
3rd.  The  Third  Path  is  that  of  those  who  will  never  return 
to  this  world,  but  will  attain  Release  in  the  present  life. 
Here  the  last  remnants  of  lust  and  of  resentment  are 
destroyed. 

4th.  The  Fourth  Path  is  that  of  the  Arahats,  the  adepts ; 
here  the  saint  is  freed  from  all  desire  for  re-birth,  whether 
in  worlds  of  form  or  no-form,  and  from  pride,  self-righteous- 
ness, and  ignorance.  The  state  of  the  Arahat  is  thus 
described : 

"  As  a  mother,  even  at  the  risk  of  her  own  life,  protects 
her  son,  her  only  son,  so  let  there  be  goodwill  without 
measure  among  all  beings.  Let  goodwill  without  measure 
prevail  in  the  whole  world,  above,  below,  around,  un- 
stinted, unmixed  with  any  feeling  of  differing  or  opposing 
interests.  If  a  man  remain  steadfastly  in  this  state  of 
mind  all  the  while  he  is  awake,  whether  he  be  standing 
walking,  sitting,  or  lying  down,  then  is  come  to  pass  the 
saying,  '  Even  in  this  world  holiness  has  been  found.' "  ^ 

^  Me/fa  Sutia, 
102 


The  Four  Paths 

The  following  are  the  Ten  Fetters,  evil  states  of  mind,  or 
sins  from  which  the  aspirant  is  freed  as  he  treads  the  Four 
Paths : 

Sakkdya-ditthi^  the  delusion  of  self  or  soul;  Vicikicchd, 
doubt;  Sllabbata  pdraftidsa,  dependence  upon  rites; 
Kdma,  sensuality,  physical  desire;  Patigha,  hatred,  resent- 
ment ;  Rfipardga,  desire  for  life  in  worlds  of  matter ;  Aru- 
pardga,  desire  for  life  in  spiritual  worlds;  Mdno,  pride; 
Uddhacca,  self-righteousness;  and  Avijjd,  ignorance. 
The  aspirant  becomes  an  Arahat  when  the  first  five  of 
these  are  wholly  overcome.  Freedom  from  the  other 
five  is  the  '  Fruit  of  the  Fourth  Path.' 
"They,  having  obtained  the  Fruit  of  the  Fourth  Path,  and 
immersed  themselves  in  that  living  water,  have  received 
without  price,  and  are  in  the  enjoyment  of  Nibbana" 
{Rata7ia  Suttd).  It  will  be  noticed  that  a  clear  distinction 
is  here  drawn  between  the  attainment  of  Arahatta  and  the 
realization  of  Nibbana,  while  in  other  places  the  two  states 
are  treated  as  identical.  It  is  clear,  however,  that  if 
Nibbana  is  the  F7'uit  of  the  Fourth  Path,  those  who  have 
merely  entered  that  Path,  and  are  thus  Arahats,  have  not 
yet  attained  the  last  freedom;  they  have,  indeed,  still 
fetters  to  break. 

There  is  another  grouping  of  the  sins  from  which  the 
Saint  is  released,  known  as  the  Three,  or  Four  Floods, 
or  Intoxications  or  Taints.  The  three  are:  (i)  Kama 
dsava,  sensuality;  (2)  Bhava  dsava,  desire  for  re-birth; 
(3)  Avijjd  dsava,  ignorance  of  the  Four  Ariyan  Truths; 
while  the  fourth  is  DittJii,  '  views,'  or  metaphysical 
speculation.  He  who  is  freed  from  these  three,  or  four. 
Deadly  Taints  of  Lusts,  Will  to  Life,  Ignorance,  and 
Views,  has  likewise  attained  release,  and  for  him  there 
is  no  return. 


103 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

//.  SAMSARA  AND  KAMMA   (KARMA) 
We   are   now   in  a   better   position    to   understand    the 
theory    of    soul-wandering   in    Early  Buddhism.     I  say 
particularly    Early    Buddhism,    because    in    the    greater 
part  of  pre-Buddhist  thought,  and  in  all  popular  thought, 

.^  whether  Brahmanical  or  Buddhist,  the  doctrine  of  metem- 

psychosis, the  passing  of  life  from  one  form  .to  another 

^-  ..r      at  death,  is  conceiyed  aqimistically  as  the  transmigration 
of  an  individual  soul. 

Take  for  example,  such  a  text  as  Bhagcivad  Gitjiju,  22  : 
"  As  a  man  lays  aside  outworn  garments  and  takes  others 
that  are  new,  so  the  Body-Dweller  puts  away  outworn 
bodies  and  goes  to  others  that  are  new."  Here  the 
language  is  plainly  animistic.  One  reader  will  understand 
that  a  soul,  an  ethereal  mannikin,  removes  from  one  abode 
to  another;  a  second  reader,  observing  that  This  (Body- 
Dweller)  is  no  other  than  That  which  is  '  not  so,  not  so,' 
perceives  that  empirically  speaking  nothing — nothing  that 
we  can  call  anything — transmigrates.  There  is  here  an 
ambiguity  which  is  inseparable  in  the  case  of  all  concep- 
tions which  are  sublimated  from  experiences  originally 
animistic  or  sensuous.^  Brahmanical  thought  does  not  seek 
to  evade  this  ambiguity  of  expression,  which  is,  moreover, 
of  historical  significance;  and  this  continuity  of  develop- 
ment has  the  advantage  that  no  impassable  gulf  is  fixed 
between  the  animist  and  the  philosopher. 
This  advantage  is  emphasized  by  Sankara  in  his  distinc- 
tion of  esoteric  and  exoteric  knowledge,  parct  and  apard 

*  As,  for  example,  in  the  analogous  case  of  rasa,  which  meant  taste  or 
flavour  in  the  sense  of  savour,  and  has  come  to  mean  in  a  technical 
sense,  aesthetic  emotion.     So  with  dnanda,  originally  physical  pleasure, 
afterwards  also  spiritual  bliss. 
104 


Samscira  and  Kamma 

vidyd:  to  That  which  is  'not  so,  not  so,'  attributes  are 
ascribed  for  purposes  of  worship  or  by  way  of  accommoda- 
tion to  finite  thought.  This  ascription  of  attributes,  on 
the  part  of  laymen,  is  regarded  by  the  philosopher  with 
lenience  :  for  he  understands  that  the  Unshown  Way,  the 
desire  for  That-which-is-not,  is  exceeding  hard.  Those 
who  have  not  yet  won  their  way  to  idealism,  may  not 
and  cannot  altogether  dispense  with  idols. ^  Brahmanism, 
regarded  as  a  Church,  is  distinguished  from  the  Buddhism 
of  Gautama — not  yet  the  Buddhism  of  the  Buddhist 
Church — by  this  tenderness  to  its  spiritual  children : — 
"  Let  not  him  that  knoweth  much  awaken  doubt  in 
slower  men  of  lesser  wit."  ^  Gautama,  on  the  other 
hand,  is  an  uncompromising  iconoclast.  He  preaches 
only  to  higher  men,  such  as  will  accept  the  hard  sayings 
of  Diikkha^  Anicca,  and  Anattd  in  all  their  nakedness. 
This  position  enabled  him  to  maintain  one  single  argu- 
ment with  entire  consistence ;  he  needed  not  to  acknow- 
ledge even  the  relative  value  of  other  forms  or  degrees  of 
truth  ;  he  wished  to  break  entirely  with  current  absolutist 
and  animistic  thoueht. 

This  position  emphasized  for  him  the  difficulty  of  express- 
ing what  he  wished  to  teach,  through  the  popular  and 
animistic  language  of  the  day  ;  and  yet  he  could  not  avoid 
the  use  of  this  language,  except  at  the  cost  of  making 
himself   unintelligible.      This   difficulty    may   well    have 

^  Those  spiritual  purists  who  insist  that  absolute  truths,  such  as  anatta 
(non-egoity),  and  fieti,  neti  (not  so,  not  so)  ought  alone  to  be  taught, 
and  who  despise  all  theological  and  esthetic  interpretation  of  these 
realities  as  false,  should  consider  the  saying  of  Master  Kassapa  :  "  Moral 
and  virtuous  Wanderers  and  Brahmans  do  not  force  maturity  on  that 
which  is  unripe;  they,  being  wise,  wait  for  that  maturity." — Fayasi 
Sutta,  Dialo}:;ues  of  the  Buddha^  ii,  332. 
^  Bhagavad  Giid,  iii,  29. 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

contributed  to  the  hesitation  which  he  felt  in  regard  to  the 
preaching  of  the  gospel.  The  method  he  was  forced  to 
adopt,  was  to  make  use  of  the  current  phraseology, 
expanding  and  emphasizing  in  his  own  way,  and 
employing  well-known  words  in  new  uses. 
We  have  therefore  to  guard  ourselves,  as  Buddhaghosha 
says,  from  supposing  that  the  manner  of  stating  the  case 
exactly  expresses  the  fact.  The  term  Samsara  is  a  case 
in  point ;  for  this  '  Wandering '  is  not  for  Gautama  the 
wandering  of  any  thijig.  Buddhism  nowhere  teaches 
the  transmigration  of  souls,  but  only  the  transmigration 
of  character,  of  personality  without  a  person. 
Many  are  the  similes  employed  by  Gautama  to  show  that 
no  thing  transmigrates  from  one  life  to  another.  The 
ending  of  one  life  and  the  beginning  of  another,  indeed, 
hardly  differ  in  kind  from  the  change  that  takes  place 
when  a  boy  becomes  a  man — that  also  is  a  transmigration, 
a  wandering,  a  new  becoming. 

Among  the  similes  most  often  used  we  find  that  of  flame 
especially  convenient.  Life  is  a  flame,  and  transmigration, 
new  becoming,  rebirth,  is  the  transmitting  of  the  flame 
from  one  combustible  aggregate  to  another;  just  that, 
and  nothing  more.  If  we  light  one  candle  from  another, 
the  communicated  flame  is  one  and  the  same,  in  the  sense 
of  an  observed  continuity,  but  the  candle  is  not  the  same. 
Or,  again,  we  could  not  offer  a  better  illustration,  if  a 
modern  instance  be  permitted,  than  that  of  a  series  of 
billiard  balls  in  close  contact :  if  another  ball  is  rolled 
against  the  last  stationary  ball,  the  moving  ball  will  stop 
dead,  and  the  foremost  stationary  ball  will  move  on.  Here 
precisely  is  Buddhist  transmigration :  the  first  moving 
ball  does  not  pass  over,  it  remains  behind,  it  dies ;  but  it 
is  undeniably  the  movement  of  that  ball,  its  momentum, 
1 06 


Samsara  and  Kamma 

its  kamma,  and  not  any  newly  created  movement,  which 
is  reborn  in  the  foremost  ball.  Buddhist  reincarnation  is 
the  endless  transmission  of  such  an  impulse  through  an 
endless  series  of  forms  ;  Buddhist  salvation  is  the  coming 
to  understand  that  the  forms,  the  billiard  balls,  are 
compound  structures  subject  to  decay,  and  that  nothing 
is  transmitted  but  an  impulse,  a  vis  a  tergo,  dependent 
on  the  heaping  up  of  the  past.  It  is  a  man's  character, 
and  not  himself,  that  goes  on. 

It  is  not  difficult  to  see  why  Gautama  adopted  the  current 
doctrine  of  kamma  (action,  by  thought,  word,  or  deed). 
In  its  simplest  form,  this  doctrine  merely  asserts  that 
actions  are  inevitably  followed  by  their  consequences, 
'  as  a  cart  a  horse.'  So  far  as  the  experience  of  one  life 
goes,  it  is  simply  the  law  of  cause  and  effect,  with  this 
addition,  that  these  causes  are  heaped  up  in  character^ 
whereby  the  future  behaviour  of  the  individual  is  very 
largely  determined. 

Kamma  must  not  be  confused  with  mechanical  pre- 
destination. It  does  not  eliminate  responsibility  nor 
invalidate  effort :  it  merely  asserts  that  the  order  of 
nature  is  not  interrupted  by  miracles.  It  is  evident  that 
I  must  lie  on  the  bed  I  have  made.  I  cannot  effect  a 
miracle,  and  abolish  the  bed  at  one  blow  ;  I  must  reap  as 
'  I '  have  sown,  and  the  recognition  of  this  fact  I  call 
kamma.  It  is  equally  certain  that  my  own  present  efforts 
repeated  and  well  directed  will  in  course  of  time  bring 
into  existence  another  kind  of  bed,  and  the  recognition  of 
this  fact  I  also  call  kamma.  So  far,  then,  from  inhibiting 
effort,  the  doctrine  of  kamma  teaches  that  no  result  can 
be  attained  without  *  striving  hard.'  There  is  indeed 
nothing  more  essential  to  the  Buddhist  discipline  than 
'  Right  Effort.' 

107 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

If  we  combine  the  doctrine  of  kamma  with  that  of  samsara, 
'deeds'  with  'wandering,'  kamma  represents  a  familiar 
truth — the  truth  that  the  history  of  the  individual  does 
not  begin  at  birth.  "  Man  is  born  like  a  garden  ready 
planted  and  sown." 

Be/ore  I  was  born  out  of  my  mother  generations 

o^iiided  me.  .  .  . 
Now  on  this  spot  I  stand. 

This  heredity  is  thinkable  in  two  ways.  The  first  way, 
the  truth  of  which  is  undeniable,  represents  the  action  of 
past  lives  on  present  ones ;  ^  the  second,  which  may  or 
may  not  be  true,  represents  the  action  of  a  single  con- 
tinuous series  of  past  lives  on  a  single  present  life.  The 
Buddhist  theory  of  kamma  plus  samsara  does  not  differ 
from  its  Brahmanical  prototype  in  adopting  the  second 
view.  This  may  have  been  because  of  its  pragmatic 
advantage  in  the  explanation  of  apparent  natural  in- 
justice ;  for  it  affords  a  reasonable  answer  to  the  question, 
"  Who  did  sin,  this  man  or  his  parents,  that  he  was  born 

^  That  the  human  individual  is  polypsychic,  that  an  indefinite  number 
of  streams  of  consciousness  coexist  in  each  of  us  which  can  be  variously 
and  in  varying  degrees  associated  or  dissociated  is  now  a  doctrine 
widely  accepted  even  by  "orthodox  psychology." 

G.  W.  Balfour,  Hibbert Joicrnal^  No.  43. 

The  same  thought  is  expressed  more  Buddhistically  by  Lafcadio  Hearn  : 
"  For  what  is  our  individuality  ?  Most  certainly  it  is  not  individuality  at 
all ;  it  is  multiplicity  incalculable.  What  is  the  human  body  ?  A  form 
built  up  out  of  billions  of  living  entities,  an  impermanent  agglomeration 
of  individuals  called  cells.  And  the  human  soul?  A  composite  of 
quintillions  of  souls.  We  are,  each  and  all,  infinite  compounds  of 
fragments  of  anterior  lives."  In  the  Psalm  of  Ananda  :  "a  congeries 
diseased,  teeming  with  many  purposes  and  places,  and  yet  in  whom 
there  is  no  power  to  persist." 
108 


Samsara  and  Kamma 

blind?"  The  Indian  theory  replies  without  hesitation, 
this  ma7i. 

Buddhism,  however,  does  not  explain  in  what  way  a 
continuity  of  cause  and  effect  is  maintained  as  between 
one  life  a  and  a  subsequent  life  b,  which  are  separated  by 
the  fact  of  physical  death;  the  thing  is  taken  for  granted.^ 
Brahmanical  schools  avoid  this  difficulty  by  postulating 
an  astral  or  subtle  body  (the  linga-saj^ra),  a  material 
complex,  not  the  Atman,  serving  as  the  vehicle  of  mind 
and  character,  and  not  disintegrated  with  the  death  of  the 
physical  body.  In  other  words,  we  have  a  group,  of  body, 
soul,  and  spirit;  where  the  two  first  are  material,  complex 
and  phenomenal,  while  the  third  is  '  not  so,  not  so.' 
That  which  transmigrates,  and  carries  over  kamma  from 
one  life  a  to  another  life  b,  is  the  soul  or  subtle  body 
(which  the  Vedanta  entirely  agrees  with  Gautama  in 
defining  as  non-Atman).  It  is  this  subtle  body  which 
forms  the  basis  of  a  new  physical  body,  which  it  moulds 
upon  itself,  effecting  as  it  were  a  spiritualistic  'mate- 
rialization '  which  is  maintained  throughout  life.  The 
principle  is  the  same  wherever  the  individual  is  reborn, 
in  heaven  or  purgatory  or  on  earth. 

In  this  view,  though  it  is  not  mentioned  by  Buddhists,^ 
there  is  nothing  contrary  to  Buddhist  theory.  The 
validity  of  the  dogma  of  non-eternal-soul  remains  un- 
challenged by  the  death  survival  of  personality;  for  that 
survival  could  not  prove  that  the  personality  constitutes 

1  Vide  T.  W.  Rhys  Davids,  Early  Buddhism,  p.  7S. 

2  Vide  T.  W.  Rhys  Davids,  Ibid.  p.  78.  That  the  theory  of  the  subtle 
body  is  not  mentioned  accords  with  Gautama's  general  objection 
to  the  discussion  of  eschatology.  It  is,  however,  a  tribute  to  the  value 
of  Buddhist  thought,  that  even  the  proof  of  the  survival  of  the  person 
would  not  affect  the  central  doctrine  of  the  soul's  complexity  and 
phenomenal  character. 

109 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

an  eternal  unity,  nor  can  it  prove  that  anything  at  all 
survived  the  attainment  of  Nibbana.  We  may  indeed 
say  that  Buddhism,  notably  in  the  Jatakas,  takes  the 
survival  of  personality  (up  to  the  time  of  attaining 
Nibbana)  for  granted ;  and  were  it  otherwise,  there 
would  be  little  reason  for  the  strong  Buddhist  objection 
to  suicide,  which  is  based  on  the  very  proper  ground  that 
it  needs  something  more  powerful  than  a  dose  of  poison 
to  destroy  the  illusion  of  I  and  Mine.  To  accomplish 
that  requires  the  untiring  effort  of  a  strong  will. 

III.  BUDDHIST  HEAVENS  AND  HOW  TO 
REACH  THEM 

Gautama  has  not  denied  the  existence  of  gods  or  of 
future  states  of  existence  in  heavens  or  hells.  Buddhism 
is  atheistic  only  in  the  sense  that  it  denies  the  existence 
of  a  First  Cause,  and  emphasizes  the  conception  of  the 
mortality  of  all  divine  beings,  however  long-lived  they 
may  be  supposed  to  be.  Apart  from  this,  Gautama  is 
represented  as  not  merely  acquiescing  in  popular  beliefs, 
but  as  speaking  of  his  own  intercourse  with  the  gods  and 
visits  to  their  heavens;  and,  still  more  important,  all 
those  spiritual  exercises  which  do  not  lead  directly  to 
Nibbana  are  specially  commended  as  securing  the  lesser, 
but  still  very  desirable,  fruits  of  re-birth,  in  the  lower 
heavens,  or  in  the  Brahma-worlds  of  Form  or  No- 
form.  In  all  this,  moreover,  there  is  nothing  illogical  to 
the  spirit  of  the  Dhamma,  which  insists  on  the  law  of 
Becoming,  but  does  not  necessarily  exclude  the  possibility 
of  other  modes  of  Becoming  than  those  familiar  in  our 
order  of  experience.  Spiritualism,  in  other  words,  while 
quite  unessential  to  early  Buddhism,  does  not  in  any  way 
contradict  the  Dhamma. 
IIQ 


Buddhist  Heavens  and  How  to  Reach  Them 

The  four  highest  heavens,  free  from 
sensuous  desire  and  not  conditioned 
by  form.  These  heavens  are  attained 
by  practice  of  the  Four  Aiupa 
yiidnas. 
Rupa-lokas,  or /"The  sixteen   heavens  free  from 


CO 

e 


A  7'7ipa-lokas^ov 
Planes  of  No- 
form. 


Planes 
Form. 


of 


/ 


Kdma-lokas,  or 
Planes  of  Sen- 
suous Desire 
(these  are  also 
R  up  a-lo  has 
but  are  not 
Brahmalokas) 


The  six  Kmnd- 
vacdra  deva- 
lokas.  These 
heavens 
attained  by 
the  merit  of 
good  works. 


sen- 
suous desire  but  conditioned  by 
form.  These  heavens  are  attained 
by  practice  of  the  Fo2ir  JJidnas. 

'  Paj^animitta-vasavatti 

gods. 
Nimmana  rati  gods. 
Tusita  heaven  (where 
Gautama  Buddha  re- 
sided previous  to  his 
last  birth  and  where 
Metteya  now  awaits 
are|   his  last  birth). 
Yama  gods. 
Tdvatimsa        heaven 
(where      reside     the 
Thirty-three  godsand 
their  chief  Sakka).^ 
The  Four  Great  Kings 
(Guardians     of     the 
Four    Quarters,    N., 
S.,  E.,  and  W.). 
The   five    worlds    of    men,    demons, 
ghosts,  animals,  and  purgatory. 

^  A  hundred  of  our  years  make  one  day  and  night  of  the  Gods  of  the 
Suite  of  the  Tliirty-three  ;  thirty  such  days  and  nights  their  month ; 
and  twelve  such  months  their  year.  And  the  length  of  their  lives 
is  a  thousand  such  celestial  years,  or  in  human  reckoning,  thirty-six 
million  years. — Pdyasi  Sutta. 

Ml 


\ 


Buddha  &"  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

The  chief  of  the  gods  who  are  commonly  spoken  of  in  the 
Suttas,  are  Sakka  and  Brahma.^  Sakka,  as  it  were,  is 
king  of  the  Olympians,  *  the  Jupiter  of  the  multitude,'  and 
is  more  or  less  to  be  identified  with  the  Indra  of  popular 
Brahmanism.  Greater  than  Sakka  and  more  spiritually 
conceived,  is  Brahma,  the  supreme  overlord  of  orthodox 
Brahman  theology  in  the  days  of  the  Buddha.  Both  of 
these  divinities  are  represented  in  the  Suttas  as  converts 
to  the  Dhamma  of  the  Buddha,  who  is  the  '  teacher  of 
gods  and  men.'  A  whole  group  of  Suttas  has  to  do  with 
the  conversion  and  exhortation  of  these  gods,  and  these 
Suttas  are  evidently  designed  to  make  it  appear  that  the 
Brahman  gods  are  really  on  the  side  of  Gautama,  and  to 
this  end  they  are  made  to  speak  as  enlightened  and 
devout  Buddhists. 

The  Buddhist  cosmogony  though  related  to  the  Brah- 
manical,  is  nevertheless  peculiar  to  itself  in  detail,  and 
deserves  some  attention.  It  will  be  better  understood 
from  the  table  on  page  1 1 1  than  by  a  lengthy  description. 
The  most  essential  and  the  truest  part  of  this  cosmogony 
however  (and  the  only  part  which  is  dwelt  upon  in  the 
more  profound  passages  of  early  Buddhist  scripture), 
is  the  three-fold  division  into  the  Planes  of  Desire,  the 
Brahma  Planes  conditioned  by  Form,  and  the  Brahma 
Planes  unconditioned  by  Form.  There  is  a  profound  truth 
concealed  even  in  the  mythological  idea  of  the  possibility 
of  visiting  the  Brahma  worlds  while  yet  living  on  earth. 
Does  not  he  rise  above  the  Plane  of  Desire  who  in  aesthetic 
contemplation  is  ''aus  sick  selbst  entriicJct  ? '"^  does  not 
the  geometrician  also  know  the  Brahma  Planes  of  Form  ? 
There  are  phases  of  experience  that  can  carry  us  further. 

*  The  impersonal  Brahman  is  unknown  to  Buddhist  dialectic. 
2  Goethe,  Faust^  ii,  p.  258. 
112 


Buddhist  Heavens  &^  How  to  Reach  Them 

M.    Poincar^    writes    of    the    mathematician    Hermite: 
"  yamais  il  iC^voqiiait  une  image  sensible^   et  poicrlant 
vous  V071S  apei'ceviez  bieyitot  q^ie  les  entitds  les  plus  abstraites 
^taicfit  pour  lui  comjue  des  Hres  vivants.     II  ne  les  voyait 
pas^   mais  il  sentait  qu^elles   ne  sont  pas  tin  assemblage 
ai'tificiel^  et  qu^elles  ont  je  7ie  sais  quel  principe  cVunitd 
ititei'ney  ^     Does    not    Keats,    moreover,    refer    to    the . 
Brahma    Plane  unconditioned  by  Form,  when  he  writes 
in  one  of  his  letters  :  "  There  will  be  no  space,  and  conse- 
quently the   only  commerce  between  spirits   will  be   by 
their  intelligence  of  each  other — when  they  will  completely 
understand  each  other,  while  we,  in  this  world,  merely 
comprehend   each   other    in    different    degrees "  ?     If  it 
be  true  that  he  who  does  not  attain  to  Nibbana  here  and 
now  is  reborn  in  some  other  world — and  this  is  taken  for 
granted  in  early  Buddhism — then  what  is  more  reasonable 
than  to  suppose  that  those  who  cultivate  here  on  earth 
those  states  of  mind  which  we  have  indicated,  viz.  the 
states  of  self-absorption  in  the  contemplation  of  beauty  or 
of  ideal  form,  or  in  the  most  abstract  thought,  are  reborn 
in  those  worlds  which  they  have  so  often  visited  ?     This 
consideration  is   maintained   as  follows   in   the    Tevijja 
Sulla : 

^  La  Valeur  de  la  Science.  Mrs  Rhys  Davids  notices  the  apparent 
absence  of  music  in  the  higher  Buddhist  heavens  {Buddhist  Psychology^ 
p.  xlv) ;  but  where  form  must  be  replaced  by  '  high  fetches  of  abstract 
thought,'  there  also  music  may  be  silent,  and  may  not  need  those 
articulated  instruments  which  are  used  in  the  lower  heavens  of  sense. 
"Pythagoras  .  .  .  did  not  say  that  the  movements  of  the  heavenly 
bodies  made  an  audible  music,  but  that  it  was  itself  a  music  .  .  .  supra- 
sensible" — (Schelling) ;  "There  the  whole  sky  is  filled  witJi  sound,  and 
there  that  music  is  made  without  fingers  and  without  strings" — (Kablr), 
There  also,  and  in  the  same  way,  exists  eternally  the  Veda  or  Dhamma 
which  is  only  '  heard '  in  lower  worlds. 

H  113 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Having  described  the   Four   Sublime  Moods,  Gautama 

asks  : 

"  Now  what  think  you,  Vasettha,  will  the  Bhikkhu  who 

thus  lives  be  in  possession  of  women  and  of  wealth,  or 

will  he  not?" 

«'  He  will  not,  Gautama !  " 

"  Will  he  be  full  of  anger,  or  free  from  anger  ?  " 

"  He  will  be  free  from  anger,  Gautama  !  " 

"  Will  his  mind  be  full  of  malice,  or  free  from  malice?  " 

"  Free  from  malice,  Gautama  !  " 

"  Will  his  mind  be  tarnished,  or  pure  ?  " 

It  will  be  pure,  Gautama  1  " 

Will  he  have  self-mastery,  or  will  he  not  ?  " 

Surely  he  will,  Gautama!  " 
"  Then  you  say,  Vasettha,  that  the  Bhikkhu  is  free  from 
household  and  worldly  cares,  and   that  Brahma  is   free 
from  household  and  worldly  cares.     Is  there  then  agree- 
ment and  likeness  between  the  Bhikkhu  and  Brahma  ?  " 
"There  is,  Gautama!" 

"Very  good,  Vasettha.  Then  in  sooth,  Vasettha,  that 
the  Bhikkhu  who  is  free  from  household  cares  should 
after  death,  when  the  body  is  dissolved,  become  united 
with  Brahma,  who  is  the  same — such  a  condition  of  things 
is  every  way  possible !  "  ^ 
)  We  must  not,  however,  suppose  that  the  cultivation  of  the 
1  Four  Sublime  Moods  by  an  ascetic,  and  according  to  the 
strict  Buddhist  formula,  is  the  only  means  of  attaining  to 
union  with  Brahma.  Buddhist  scripture  recognizes  beside 
these  ethical  exercises  other  special  conditions  of  intellect 
and  emotion  which  are  attained  in  the  'Four  Jhanas,' 
and  these  practices,  like  those  of  the  Four  Sublime  Moods, 
may  be  followed  by  householders  as  well  as  by  ascetics. 

^  T.  W.  Rhys  Davids,  Dialogues  of  the  Buddha.^  i,  p.  318. 
114 


Nibbana 

If  it  should  be  proved,  or  come  to  be  generally  believed 
in  the  modern  world  that  personality  survives  death — 
and  is  it  reasonable  to  suppose  that  the  accident  of  death 
should  suffice  to  overcome  the  individual  Will  to  Life  ? 
— then  some  such  classification  of  the  heavens  as  is  indi- 
cated in  early  Buddhist  eschatology  may  well  be  used ; 
alternatively,  we  might  speak  of  the  three  heavens  of  the 
Monist — Beauty,  Love,  and  Truth.  And  we  may  well 
believe  with  the  early  Buddhists  that  those  who  shall 
reach  these  heavens  are  precisely  those  who  have  already 
experienced  similar  states  of  consciousness  :  the  various 
ranks  of  artists,  lovers,  and  philosophers.  The  self- 
devotion  and  self-forgetfulness  of  these  must  lead  as 
surely  as  the  Buddhist  trances  to  the  Brahma-worlds, 
on  the  principle  that  like  to  like  attains.  Equally 
with  the  Buddhist  trances  also,  must  the  concentra- 
tion of  the  artist,  lover  and  philosopher  tend  to  final 
emancipation. 

IV.  NIBBANA 

"The  story  admits  of  being  told  thus  far,  but  what  follows  is 
hidden,  and  cannot  be  told  in  y<'Oxds."—/allaluddin  Rwni. 

Nibbana  is  one  of  the  many  names  for  the  goal  and  S2im- 
mum  6omc7n  to  which  all  other  purposes  of  Buddhist 
thought  converge.  What  are  Moksha  to  the  Brahman, 
the  Tao  to  the  Chinese  mystic,  Fa7id  to  the  Sufi 
Eternal  Life  to  the  followers  of  Jesus,  that  is  Nibbana 
to  the  Buddhist.  To  attain  to  this  Nibbana,  beyond  the 
reach  of  Evil,  is  the  single  thought  that  moves  the  Budd- 
hist aspirant  to  enter  on  the  Paths.  Whoever  would 
understand  Buddhism,  then,  must  seek  to  understand 
Nibbana :  not,  that  is  to  say,  to  interpret  it  metaphysi- 
cally— for  speculation  is  one  of  the  Deadly  Taints — but 

115 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

to  understand  its  implications  to  an  orthodox  Buddhist 
and  its  meaning  on  the  lips  of  Gautama. 
Unfortunately,   the  term  Nibbana   (in  its  Sanskrit  form 
Nirvana)    became  familiar   to    European   students   long 
before  the  Buddhist  scriptures  had  been  made  accessible; 
and  the  early  western  writers  on  Buddhism  "  interpreted 
Buddhism  in  terms  of  their  own  belief,  as  a  state  to  be 
reached  after  death.      As  such  they  supposed  the  '  dying 
out '  must  mean  the  dying  out  of  '  a  soul ' ;  and  endless 
were  the  discussions  whether  this  meant  eternal  trance,  or 
absolute  annihilation  of  a  soul."  ^     How  irrelevant  was  this 
discussion  will  be  seen  when  we  realize  that  Nibbana  is  a 
state  to  be  realized  here  and  now,  and  is  recorded  to  have 
been  attained   by  the   Buddha  at  the  beginning  of  his 
ministry,  as  well  as  by  innumerable  Arahats,  his  disciples; 
and  when  we  remember  that  Buddhism  denies  the  existence 
of  a  soul,  at  any  time,  whether  before  or  after  death. 
In  the  MilindaPanha,  Nibbana  is  compared  to  a  "glorious 
city,   stainless  and   undefiled,  pure   and   white,    ageless, 
deathless,  secure,  calm  and  happy  " ;  and  yet  this  city  is 
very  far  from  being  a  heaven  to  which  good  men  attain 
after  death : 

"There  is  no  spot,  O  king.  East,  South,  West  or  North, 
above,  below  or  beyond,  where  Nibbana  is  situate,  and  yet 
Nibbana  is;  and  he  who  orders  his  life  aright,  grounded 
in  virtue,  and  with  rational  attention,  may  realize  it, 
whether  he  live  in  Greece,  China,  Alexandria,  or  in 
Kosala." 

1  But  the  Milinda  Panha  also  speaks  (erroneously)  of  an  Arahat  as 
*  entering  into '  Nibbana,  saying  that  the  layman  who  attains  to  Arahatta 
must  either  enter  the  Order  or  pass  into  Nibbana,  the  latter  alternative 
here  implying  physical  death  (as  in  the  case  of  Suddhodana,  the  father 
of  Buddha,  p.  48). 
116 


Nibbana 

He  enters  into  this  city  who  '  emancipates  his  mind  in 
Arahatta.' 

The  literal  meaning  of  the  word  Nibbana  is:  'dying  out,' 
or  'extinction,'  as  of  a  fire.^  To  understand  its  technical 
import  we  must  call  to  mind  the  simile  of  flame  so  con- 
stantly employed  in  Buddhist  thought:  "The  whole 
world  is  in  flames,"  says  Gautama.  "  By  what  fire  is  it 
kindled?  By  the  fire  of  lust  (raga),  of  resentment  (dosa), 
of  glamour  (moha) ;  by  the  fire  of  birth,  old  age,  death, 
pain,  lamentation,  sorrow,  grief  and  despair  it  is  kindled." 
The  process  of  transmigration,  the  natural  order  of  Be- 
coming, is  the  communication  of  this  flame  from  one 
^gg^^gate  of  combustible  material  to  another.  The 
salvation  of  the  Arahat,  the  saint,  then,  is  the  dying 
down — Nibbana — of  the  flames  of  lust,  hate,  and  glamour, 
and  of  the  will  to  life.  Nibbana  is  just  this,  and  no  more 
and  no  less. 

Nibbana  (nirvana)  is  the  only  Buddhist  term  for  salvation 
familiar  to  western  readers,  but  it  is  only  one  of  many  that 
occur  in  the  orthodox  Buddhist  scriptures.  Perhaps  the 
broadest  term   is    Vimokhd,  or   Viimitti,  'salvation'  or 

^  Other  etymologies  are  possible  :  thus  "  It  is  called  Nibbana,  in  that  it 
is  a  '  de-parture '  from  that  craving  which  is  called  vCina,  lusting " — 
(Anuruddha,  Compendium  of  Philosophy,  iv,  14),  It  is  important  to 
remember  that  the  term  Nirvana  is  older  than  Buddhism,  and  is  one 
of  the  many  words  used  by  Gautama  in  a  special  sense.  In  the 
Upanishads  it  does  not  mean  the  dying  out  of  anything,  but  rather 
perfect  self-realization  ;  to  those  in  whom  the  darkness  of  ignorance  has 
been  dispersed  by  perfect  knowledge,  'as  the  highest  goal  there  opens 
before  them  the  eternal,  perfect,  Nirvanam '— (C//«//^^iy(Z  Upanishad, 
8,  15,  i).  Buddhist  usage  emphasizes  the  strict  etymological  significance 
of  'dying  out;'  but  even  so,  it  is  not  the  dying  out  of  a  soul  or  an  indi- 
viduality, for  no  such  thing  exists,  and  therefore  no  such  thing  can  die 
out ;  it  is  only  the  passions  (craving,  resentment  and  delusion)  that  can 
die  out.     As  to  what  remains,  if  anything,  early  Buddhism  is  silent. 

117 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

'deliverance,'  and  those  who  have  attained  this  salvation 
are  called  Arahats,  adept,  whilst  the  state  of  adeptship  is 
called  Amhatta.  Other  terms  and  definitions  include  the 
'end  of  suffering,'  the  'medicine  for  all  evil,'  'living 
water,'  the  'imperishable,'  the  'abiding,'  the  'ineffable,' 
the  'detachment,'  the  'endless  security.' 
The  Nibbana  of  which  we  have  so  far  spoken,  it  will  be 
seen,  is  essentially  ethical ;  but  this  Nibbana  involves, 
and  is  often  used  as  a  synonym  for,  'the  cessation  of 
becoming ' ;  ^  and  this,  of  course,  is  the  great  desideratum, 
of  which  the  ethical  '  extinction '  is  merely  the  means  and 
the  outward  sign.  Salvation  {vimutti)  has  thus  also  a 
psychological  aspect,  of  which  the  most  essential  element 
is  the  release  from  individuality.  Thus  we  find  defined 
the  following  Eight  Stations  of  Deliverance :  (i)  Having 
oneself  external  form,  one  sees  forms ;  (2)  unaware  of  one's 
own  external  form,  one  sees  forms  external  to  oneself; 
(3)  sesthetic  hypnosis ;  (4)  abiding  in  the  sphere  of  space 
regarded  as  infinite ;  (5)  abiding  in  the  sphere  of  cognition 
regarded  as  infinite ;  (6)  abiding  in  the  sphere  of  nothing- 
ness; (7)  abiding  in  the  sphere  of  neither  ideation  nor 
non-ideation;  and  (8)  abiding  in  the  state  where  both 
sensations  and  ideas  have  ceased  to  be.^ 
Another  way  to  realize  the  practical  connotation  of  the 
Buddhist  Nibbana,  is  to  consider  the  witness  of  those 
Arahats  who,  beside  Gautama,  have  attained  thereto. 
Two  of  Gautama's  disciples  are  said  to  have  testified  as 
follows:  "Lord,  he  who  is  Arahant,  who  .  .  .  has  won 
his  own  salvation,  has  utterly  destroyed  the  fetters  of 

^  Samyutia  Nikdya,  ii,  115. 

2  Maha     Nidana    Sutta,     35 ;     Mahdparinibhdtia     Si/tta,     33.      The 

4th- 7 th  stations  are  identical  with  the  Four  Arupa  Jhanas  by  which 

the  Formless  heavens  are  attained — see  pp.  1 1 1,  147. 

118 


Nibbana 

becoming,  who  is  by  perfect  wisdom  emancipate,  to  him 
there  does  not  occur  the  thought  that  any  are  better  than 
/,  or  equal  to  me^  or  less  than  /."  "  Even  so,"  answered 
Gautama,  "  do  men  of  the  true  stamp  declare  the  gnosis 
they  have  attained ;  they  tell  what  they  have  gained  {atthci)^ 
but  do  not  speak  of  I  {atta).^^  ^  The  emancipation  con- 
templated in  early  Buddhism  is  from  mdna,  the  conceit 
of  self-reference,  the  Samkhyan  ahamkd7n.  Of  him  that 
has  attained  we  can  truly  say  that  nothing  of  himself  is 
left  in  him.  Thus  we  find  a  dialogue  of  two  disciples ; 
one  has  a  serene  and  radiant  expression,  and  the  other 
asks,  "Where  have  you  been  this  day,  O  Sariputta?" 
"  I  have  been  alone,  in  first  Jhana  (contemplation), 
brother,"  is  the  triumphant  answer,  "and  to  me  there 
never  came  the  thought:  '/  am  attaining  it;  /  have 
emerged  with  it  1 '"  " 

For  the  effect  on  life  of  the  experience  of  Nibbana,  we 
have  the  witness  of  the  Brethren  and  Sisters  whose 
'  Psalms  '  are  recorded  in  the  Therd-theri-gdthd.^  To 
take  the  Brethren  first :  "  Illusion  utterly  has  passed  from 
me,"  says  one,  "  cool  am  I  now;  gone  out  all  fire  within." 
Another  describes  the  easy  movement  of  the  life  of  the 
free: 

E^en  as  the  high-bred  steer  with  crested  back  lightly  the 

plotigh  adozun  the  furrow  turns. 
So  lightly  glide  for  me  the  nights  and  days,  now  that  this 

pure  untainted  bliss  is  zuonP 

^  Anguitara  Nikdya,  iii,  359. 

2  Samyutta  Nikdya,  iii,  235.     Cf.  the  Sufi  conception  of  Fami  al-fand, 

'the   passing  away  of  passing  away,'  when   even   the   consciousness 

of  having  attained /a««  disappears. 

^  Written  down  80  B.C.,  and  available  to  English  readers  in  the  careful 

and  sympathetic  versions  of  C.   A.   F.   Rhys  Davids,  Psalms  of  the 

Sis/irs,  1 9 1  o,  and  Psalms  of  the  Brethren,  ^  9  t  3. 

/  119 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Perhaps  the  prevailing  thought  is  a  more  or  less  rapturous 
delight  in  the  escape  from  evil  and  from  craving  (dukkha 
and  tanha),  from  lust,  hate,  and  infatuation,  and  from 
the  prospect  of  re-birth — of  continued  Becoming  in  any 
other  conditioned  life.  From  the  standpoint  of  will, 
again,  there  is  emphasis  upon  the  achievement  of  freedom, 
self-mastery,  and  so  forth.  And  the  attainment  is  also 
expressed  poetically — just  as  the  Brahman  in  Brahmanical 
scripture  is  symbolized  as  'bliss,'  'intelligence,'  etc. — 
as  light,  truth,  knowledge,  happiness,  calm,  peace;  but 
the  similes  are  always  cool,  never  suggesting  any  violent 
rapture  or  overmastering  emotion.  But  while  we  recog- 
nize an  unmistakable  note  of  exultation  in  the  conquest 
achieved  here  and  now,  we  must  also  clearly  recognize 
that  orthodox  Buddhist  teaching  is  characterized  by  "the 
absence  of  all  joy  in  the  forward  view; "  ^  and,  indeed,  no 
mystic  can  look  forward  to  greater  bliss  than  has  already 
been  experienced :  ^  to  what  more,  indeed,  can  one  who 
has  already  attained  the  siimmum  bonum  look  forward, 
or  what  can  the  physical  accident  of  death  achieve  for 
him  who  has  already  by  his  own  effort  reached  the  goal  ? 
Gautama  expressly  refuses  to  answer  any  question  relative 
to  life  after  death,  and  he  condemns  all  speculation 
as  unedifying :  "  I  have  not,"  he  says,  addressing  the 
venerable  Malunkyaputta,  who  desired  information  on 
these  points,  "  revealed  that  the  Arahat  exists  after  death, 

1  have  not  revealed  that  he  does  not  exist;  I  have  not 
revealed  that  he  at  once  exists  and  does  not  exist  after 
death,  nor  that  he  neither  exists  nor  does  not  exist  after 

^  C.  A.  F.  Rhys  Davids,  Psabns  of  the  Brethren,  iQiSi  P-  xlviii. 

2  For :  "  Paradise  is  still  upon  earth — "  (Behmen) :  "  When  I  go  hence, 
may  my  last  words  be,  that  what  I  have  seen  is  unsurpassable  "  (Tagore). 
There  is  nothing  more  to  be  desired. 

I  20 


Nibbana 

death.     And  why,  Mahinkyaputta,  have  I  not  revealed 

these  things?     Because,  O   Malunkyaputta,   this   is   not 

edifying,  nor  connected  with  the  essence  of  the  norm,  nor 

tend  to  turning  of  the  will,  to  the  absence  of  passion,  to 

cessation,  rest,  to  the  higher  faculties,  to  supreme  wisdom, 

nor  to  Nibbana;  therefore  have  I  not  revealed  it."^     The 

early  Arahats,  refraining  loyally  from  speculation,  might 

have  concurred  with  Emerson  in  saying :  "  Of  immortality 

the  soul,  when  well  employed,  is  incurious.     It  is  so  well 

that  it  is  sure  it  will  be  well." 

It  is  most  explicitly  indicated  that  the  state  of  Nibbana 

cannot  be  discussed  : 

As   a    flame   blown   to   and  fro  by  the  wind,   says   the 

Buddha,  goes  out  and  cannot  be  registered,  even  so  a 

Sage,  set  free  from  name  and  form,  has  disappeared,  and 

cannot  be  registered. 

The  disciple  inquires  :  Has  he  then  merely  disappeared, 

or  does  he  indeed  no  longer  exist  ? 

For  him  who  has  disappeared,   says  the  Buddha,  there 

is  no  form ;  that  by  which  they  say  '  He  is '  exists  for 

him  no  more ;  when  all  conditions  are  cut  off,  all  matter 

for  discussion  is  also  cut  off.^ 

Or  again  : 

As  the  fiery  sparks  from  a  forge  are  one  by  one 
extinguished^ 

And  no  one  knows  where  they  have  gone,  .  .  . 

So  it  is  with  those  who  have  attainted  to  com- 
plete emancipation. 

Who  have  crossed  the  flood  of  desire. 

Who  have  entered  upon  the  calm  delight. 

Of  these  no  trace  remains. 

^  Majjhima  Nikdya,  Sutta  63. 
^  Sutla-uipCita,  1073-5. 

121 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

On  this  account  they  are  sometimes  compared  to  the 
birds  of  the  air,  whose  path  is  hard  to  follow,  because 
they  leave  no  trace.  ^ 

Let  us  return  to  the  meaning  of  Nibbana  or  Vimutti  as 
it  applies  to  the  still  living  Arahat.  The  Arahat  and  the 
Buddha  have  alike  attained  Nibbana  or  Vimutti,  and 
are  Vimutto ;  are  we  to  understand  that  this  state  is 
continuously  maintained  from  the  moment  of  enlighten- 
ment to  the  moment  of  death  ?  If  so,  what  is  it  that 
maintains  life  in  the  delivered  being?  This  question 
arises  equally  in  the  Vedanta.  The  usual  answer  is  that 
the  momentum  of  antecedent  kamnia  suffices  to  carry  on 
the  individual  life  even  after  the  '  Will  to  Life '  has 
ceased,  and  this  is  expressed  in  the  brilliant  simile  of 
the  potter's  wheel,  which  continues  to  turn  for  some  time 
after  the  hand  of  the  potter  is  removed.  In  any  case  it  is 
evident  that  the  freedom  of  the  Arahat  or  Jivan-mukta 
does  not  involve  an  immediate  and  permanent  eman- 
cipation from  mortality  :  the  Buddha,  for  example,  though 
he  had  long  since  attained  Perfect  Enlightenment,  is 
recorded  to  have  suffered  from  severe  illness,  and  to  have 
been  aware  of  it.  It  is,  no  doubt,  considerations  of  this 
sort  which  determined  the  distinction  which  was  some- 
times drawn  between  Nibbana,  or  *  Dying  Out,'  and 
Parinibbana,  '  Complete  or  Final  Dying  Out,'  coincident 
with  physical  death. 

The  Arahat  has,  indeed,  passed  through  an  experience 
which  illumines  all  his  remaininof  life :  he  knows  thingrs 
as  they  really  are,  and  is  saved  from  fear  and  grief :  he 
has  realized,  if  but  for  an  instant,  the  Abyss,  wherein  all 
Becoming  is  not.  He  is  satisfied  of  the  authenticity  of 
the  experience  by  the  very  fact  that  the  thought  '  I  am 
^  Dhammapada^  v.  92. 

122 


Nibbana 

experiencing,  I  have  experienced '  was  not  present.  But 
the  mere  fact  that  he  knows  that  he  has  had  this  ex- 
perience, and  may  have  it  again — may  even  command  it 
at  will — proves  that  he  does  not  continuously  realize  it. 
It  is  contrary,  moreover,  to  all  spiritual  experience — and 
we  must  protest  strongly  against  the  Buddhist  claim  that 
the  Buddhist  experience  of  salvation  is  unique — that  the 
highest  rapture  should  be  regarded  as  consciously  coexistent 
with  the  ordinary  activity  of  the  empirical  consciousness, 
even  where  the  daily  routine  of  life  is  so  simple  as  that 
of  the  Buddhist  Brother.  And  in  Buddhist  scriptures 
it  is  frequently  indicated  that  both  the  Buddha  and  the 
Brethren  pass  into  and  out  from  the  highest  rapture.  At 
other  times  the  empirical  consciousness  must  be  awake — 
and,  indeed,  this  consciousness,  being  component  and 
mutable,  cannot,  as  such,  be  *  set  free.'  Experience 
therefore  suggests  that  while  Nibbana  is  most  assuredly 
accessible  here  and  now — as  the  mystics  of  all  ages  have 
emphatically  testified — a  continuous  realization  of  salva- 
tion is  only  thinkable  after  death.  And,  as  the  Buddha 
says,  what  that  realization  involves  is  not  thinkable. 
Later  Buddhism  affords  another  explanation  of  the  fact 
that  we  cannot  regard  Nibbana  or  Vimutti  in  this  life  as 
an  uninterrupted  experience.  This  explanation,  which  is 
akin  to  the  Docetic  heresy  of  Christianity,  logically  well 
founded,  asserts  that  the  emancipated  individual — the 
case  of  the  Buddha  is  particularly  considered  in  a  system 
which  regards  Buddhahood  rather  than  Arahatta  as  the 
goal — is  once  and  for  all  freed  :  and  what  remains,  the 
living  and  speaking  man  on  earth,  is  merely  a  mirage, 
existent  in  the  consciousness  of  others,  but  not  maintained 
by  any  inherent  Will  to  Life — it  is  once  more,  the  potter's 
wheel,  from  which  the  hand  of  the  potter  has  been  lifted. 

123 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

There  is  a  certain  amount  of  evidence  tending  to  show 
that  the  Nibbana  or  Vimutti  state  affords  the  franchise 
of  both  worlds,  the  Byss  as  well  as  the  Abyss.  We  read, 
for  example,  that  when  a  Brother  has  mastered  the  Eight 
Stations  of  Deliverance  "  so  that  he  is  able  to  lose 
himself  in,  as  well  as  to  emerge  from,  any  one  of  them, 
whenever  he  chooses,  wherever  he  chooses,  and  for 
as  long  as  he  chooses — when  too  by  rooting  out  the 
Taints,  he  enters  into  and  abides  in  that  emancipation  of 
heart,  that  emancipation  of  the  intellect  which  he  by 
himself,  here  in  this  present  world,  has  come  to  know 
and  realize — then  such  a  Brother,  Ananda,  is  called 
'  Free-in-both-ways.'"  1  Unfortunately  we  cannot  here 
take  "  Free-in-both-ways  "  to  mean  "  free  of  both  worlds  " 
— the  conditioned  and  the  unconditioned — for  the  phrase 
clearly  refers  to  the  dual  character  of  Deliverance  as  at 
once  psychological  and  ethical.  But  it  is,  nevertheless, 
indicated  that  the  adept  Brother  is  free  to  pass  from  one 
world  to  the  other,  from  the  Byss  to  the  Abyss,  and  the 
Abyss  to  the  Byss  at  will :  and  we  can  hardly  suppose 
that  physical  death  involves  the  loss  of  this  power  :  or  if 
we  do  so,  we  have  immediately  drawn  a  distinction 
between  Nibbana  of  the  living  individual,  and  Nibbana 
of  the  dead — and  the  latter  becomes  the  more  limited, 
the  less  free.  And  that  the  Vimutta  consciousness  after 
the  death  of  the  individual — or  rather,  altogether  apart 
from  the  birth  or  death  of  the  individual — really  touches 
both  the  Byss  and  the  Abyss,  as  Brahmanical  mysticism 
plainly  asserts,  is  at  any  rate  not  denied  by  the  Buddha. 
We  even  find  it  laid  down  that  "To  say  of  a  Brother 
thus  set  free  by  insight — '  He  knows  not,  he  sees  not ' — 
that  were  absurd  1 "  ^     In  other  words,  it  is   clear,  the 

^  Maha-Niddna  Sutta,  36.  ^  Ibid.  32. 

124 


Nibbana 

emancipated  '  individual,'  after  death,  does  not  cease  '  to 
know  things  as  they  really  are ' :  the  doors  of  perception 
being  cleansed,  he  must  continue  to  see  all  things  as  they 
are,  infinite — or  to  revert  to  Buddhist  phraseology,  as 
void.  There  is  however  no  individual  who  '  sees,'  for 
the  erstwhile  individual  is  likewise  infinite  or  void : 
subject  and  object  are  unified  in  the  Abyss.  Thus  once 
again,  we  cannot  set  up  a  final  distinction  between  the 
positive  and  negative  phraseology  of  mysticism.  What 
is  in  any  case  certain  is  that  the  Buddhist  (and  Brah- 
manical)  use  of  negatives  does  not  imply  that  the  state 
of  freedom  involves  a  loss  for  those  who  find  it.  For 
Western  readers  the  language  of  Western  mystics 
should  be  a  sufficient  indication  of  what  is  meant : 
Nibbana  is  assuredly  '  that  noble  Pearl,  which  to  the 
World  appears  Nothing,  but  to  the  Children  of  Wisdom 
is  All  Things.^  Precisely  what  Nibbana  signifies 
in  early  Buddhism,  and  Nirvana  in  the  Mahayana, 
could  not"  be  more  exactly  explained  than  in  the  first 
and  second  of  the  following  paragraphs  of  Behmen's 
Dialogues : 

"  Lastly,  whereas  I  said.  Whosoever  finds  it  finds  Nothing 
and  all  Things  ;  that  is  also  certain  and  true.  But  how 
finds  he  Nothing"^  Why,  I  will  tell  thee  how  He  that 
findeth  it  findeth  a  supernatural,  supersensual  Abyss, 
which  hath  no  ground  or  Byss  to  stand  on,  and  where 
there  is  no  place  to  dwell  in ;  and  he  findeth  also  nothing 
is  like  unto  it  and  therefore  it  may  fitly  be  compared  to 
A^othing,  for  it  is  deeper  than  any  Thing,  and  it  is  as 
Nothing  with  respect  to  All  Things,  forasmuch  as  it  is 
not  comprehensible  by  any  of  them.  And  because  it  is 
Nothing  respectively,  it  is  therefore  free  from  All  Things, 
and  is  that  only  Good,  which  a  man  cannot  express  or 

125 


Buddha  (Sf  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

utter  what  it  is,  there  being  Nothing  to  which  it  may  be 
compared,  to  express  it  by. 

"  But  in  that  I  lastly  said  :  Whosoever  finds  it  finds  All 
Things  \  there  is  nothing  can  be  more  true  than  this 
assertion.  It  hath  been  the  Beginning  of  All  Things  ; 
and  it  ruleth  All  Things.  It  is  also  the  End  of  All 
Things ;  and  will  thence  comprehend  All  Things  within 
its  circle.  All  Things  are  from  it,  and  in  it,  and  by 
it.  If  thou  findest  it  thou  comest  into  that  ground 
from  whence  All  Things  are  proceeded,  and  wherein 
they  subsist;  and  thou  art  in  it  a  King  over  all  the 
works  of  God." 

V.  ETHICS 

"  Let  not  a  brother  occupy  himself  with  busy  works." 

Theragdthd^  1072. 

In  considering  the  subject  of  Buddhist  morality,  we  can- 
not, in  the  first  place,  too  strongly  emphasize  the  fact  that 
it  was  no  more  the  purpose  of  Gautama  than  of  Jesus  to 
establish  order  in  the  world. ^  Nothing  could  have  been 
further  from  his  thoughts  than  the  redress  of  social  in- 
justice, nor  could  any  more  inappropriate  title  be  devised 
for  Him-who-has-thus-attained,  than  that  of  democrat  or 
social  reformer.  A  wise  man,  says  the  Dhavimapada^ 
should  leave  the  dark  state  of  life  in  the  world  and  follow 
the  bright  state  of  life  as  a  monk.^ 

1  Dhammapada,  v,  412.  The  Buddhist,  like  the  Tolstoyan  Christian, 
has  no  faith  in  government.  We  read  of  spiritual  lessons  for  princes, 
but  the  '  road  of  political  wisdom '  is  called  '  an  unclean  path  of  false- 
ness '  {/atakamald,  xix,  2  7).  The  point  is  further  illustrated  in  Gautama's 
refusal  to  intervene  when  the  message  is  brought  that  Devadatta  has 
usurped  the  throne  of  Kapilavatthu  {supra,  p.  32). 

2  Ibid.  87,  88. 
126 


Ethics 

Gautama's  message  is  addressed  to  those  in  whom  he 
perceived  the  potentiality  of  final  insight  already  upon  the 
point  of  ripening :  for  these  he  speaks  the  word  of  release 
from  which  arises  the  irresistible  call  to  leave  the  world 
and  to  follow — Nibbana.  "  To  the  wise  belongeth  this 
Law,  and  not  to  the  foolish  : "  for  children  and  those  who 
are  like  children  (as  Professor  Oldenberg  remarks)  the 
arms  of  Buddha  are  not  opened.  It  is  not  even  just  to 
Gautama  to  contrast  his  Dhamma — the  Buddhist  Norm 
— with  the  Dharmas  which  are  assigned  to  men  of  diverse 
social  status  in  the  Brahmanical  social  order.  In  order 
to  view  his  doctrine  without  prejudice  we  must  concentrate 
our  attention  upon  the  Sangha,  the  Order,  which  he 
founded :  we  must  compare  his  system,  not  with  other 
religions,  but  with  other  monastic  systems,  and  consider 
whether  or  no  its  mental  and  moral  discipline  is  calculated 
to  bestow  on  those  who  follow  it,  the  salvation  which  they 
desired.  For  Gautama  certainly  did  not  believe  that 
salvation  could  be  attained  in  any  other  way,  nor  by  Brethren 
of  any  other  Order :  for  such  as  these  and  for  the  vast 
mass  of  laymen  there  could  be  only  a  question  of  rebirth 
in  favourable  or  unfavourable  conditions  according  to  the 
moral  value  of  their  deeds. ^ 

The  early  Buddhist  ideal  is  not  only  far  removed  from 
what  is  immoral,  but  also,  and  not  less  far,  from  what  is 
moral :    it  goes  beyond  these  conceptions  of   good  and 

*  Buddhism  has  much  to  say  of  the  future  state  of  those  who  die 
unsaved,  not  having  cut  off  the  conditions  which  determine  rebirth. 
As  it  is  expressed  by  Mrs  Rhys  Davids,  "The  mass  of  good  average 
folk,  going,  with  the  patience  and  courage  of  all  sane  mortals,  through 
stage  after  stage  of  green  immaturity,  through  the  joys  and  sorrows  that 
have  recurred  and  will  recur  so  infinitely  often,  heaven  and  purgatory 
and  earth  itself  await  their  future." 

127 


Buddha  (§f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

evil,  for  even  good  deeds,  after  the  judgment  of  the 
world,  determine  rebirth :  verily,  they  have  their  reward. 
"  And  ye.  Brethren,"  says  Gautama,  "  learn  by  the 
parable  of  the  raft  that  ye  must  put  away  good  conditions, 
not  to  speak  of  bad."  The  good  is  but  the  raft  that 
carries  us  across  the  dangerous  sea;  he  that  would  land 
upon  the  farther  shore  must  leave  the  raft  when  it  touches 
the  strand.  To  realize  this  truth  however  detracts  in 
no  way  from  a  realization  of  the  present  value  of  the 
raft. 

This  is  a  'Religion  of  Eternity' — the  Brahmanical  ni- 
vritti  mdrga — and  as  such  could  be  legitimately  spoken  of 
as  anti-social,  if  it  were  in  the  least  degree  likely  or  had 
it  been  contemplated  that  it  should  or  could  be  adopted 
in  its  entirety  by  all.  Such  religions,  while  they  embody 
the  highest  truth  to  which  mankind  has  attained,  are  only 
to  be  criticized  as  puritanical  in  so  far  as  their  followers 
seek  to  impose  an  ascetic  regime  (rather  than  one  of 
temperance)  on  all  alike ;  in  so  far  as  their  view  of  art  is 
exclusively  hedonistic;  and  their  view  of  worship  and 
ritual  wholly  unsympathetic. 

There  is  much  to  be  said  for  the  Brahmanical  doctrine 
of  the  social  debt,  and  for  the  view  that  a  man 
should  retire  from  the  world  only  late  in  life,  and 
only  after  taking  due  part  in  the  life  of  the  world. 
Nevertheless  we  must  affirm  the  conviction  that  the 
renunciation  of  the  world,  at  any  moment,  by  those 
who  experience  the  vocation  to  asceticism,  is  entirely 
justifiable,  if  the  vocation  be  real.  It  is,  further,  a  posi- 
tive social  and  moral  advantage  to  the  community  that  a 
certain  number  of  its  finest  minds,  leading  a  life  that  may 
be  called  sheltered,  should  remain  unattached  to  social 
activities  and  unbound  by  social  ties.  Too  much  stress 
X23 


Ethics 

is  laid  upon  '  utility  '  in  communities  where  neither  ;r//- 
gieux  nor  women  are  '  protected.'  And  notwithstanding 
that  it  is  not  the  purpose  of  the  hermit  to  establish  order 
in  the  world,  let  us  remember  that  the  onlooker  sees  most 
of  the  game ;  it  is  not  without  reason  that  it  has  become 
an  established  tradition  of  the  East  that  the  ruler  should 
be  guided  by  the  sage.  The  example  of  asceticism, 
moreover,  where  this  asceticism  is  natural  and  effortless, 
provides  a  useful  corrective  to  luxury;  where  voluntary 
poverty  is  highly  respected,  some  part  of  the  suffering 
involved  in  ordinary  poverty  is  taken  away.  To  this 
day,  the  Indian  Brahman  ideal  of  plain  living  and 
social  discipline  strongly  influences  the  manners  and 
customs  of  all  other  castes;  and  the  same  result  is 
attained  by  Buddhist  monasticism  in  Burma,  where  it 
is  customary,  not  merely  for  life  ascetics,  for  all  men 
of  whatever  calling,  to  spend  a  shorter  or  longer  time 
within  the  fold  of  the  Order. 

Most  likely  the  root  of  the  objection  which  many  feel  for 
monastic  ideals  of  the  Buddhist  type  is  to  be  found  in  the 
*  selfishness'  of  their  aim,  or  to  put  the  matter  in  another 
way,  in  the  laying  of  stress  on  Knowledge,  rather  than 
Love.  But  let  us  remember  that  most  and  maybe  all  of 
our  '  unselfishness '  is  a  delusion. 

No  one  can  grow  for  another — not  one. 

The  gift  is  to  the  givei'^  aiid  comes  back  most  to  him — it 

caufiot  fail. 
And  no  man  tuiderstands  any  greatness  or  goodness  but 

his  owji,  or  the  indication  of  his  own. 

Let  us  also  remember  that  pity  no  more  coidd  be,  if  all 
were  as  Jiappy  as  ye-,  and  just  this  happiness  is  promised 
to  all  who  are  prepared  to  relinquish  desire,  resentment, 

I  129 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

and  sentimentality.     We  must  not  forget  that  it  was  a 
recognized  duty  of  the  Brethren,  and  sometimes  of  the 
Sisters,  to  preach  the  Dhamma ;  and  who  will  put  forward 
the  assertion  that  man  shall  live  by  bread  alone  ?     Accord- 
ing to  the  Edict  of  Asoka,  "There  is  no  such  almsgiving 
as  is  the  almsgiving  of  the  Dhamma."     This  was  equally 
theviewof  so  practical  aWestern  mind  as  Cromwell's,  whose 
first  extant  letter  (as  Mr  Vincent  Smith  has  pointed  out) 
supplies  a  near  parallel  to  the  saying  of  Asoka  just  quoted  : 
"  Building  of  hospitals,"  he  writes,  "provides  for  men's 
bodies ;  to  material  temples  is  judged  a  work  of  piety ;  but 
they  that  procure  spiritual  food,  they  that  build  up  spiritual 
temples,  they  are  the  men  truly  charitable,  truly  pious." 
It  is  most  likely  that  the  earliest  Buddhism  had  no  other 
moral  code  than  that  of  the  mental  and  moral  discipline 
appointed  for  those  who  renounced  the  world  and  entered 
the  Paths.     The  following  Ten  Commandments  are  those 
which  are  binding  upon  the  Brethren : 
j  To  avoid  (i)   the  destruction  of  life,  (2)  theft,  (3)  un- 
'  chastity,   (4)   lying,   (5)  the  use  of  intoxicating  liquors, 
I  (6)  eating  between  meals,  (7)  attending  secular  entertain- 
j   ments,  (8)  use  of  unguents  and  jewellery,  (9)  the  use  of 
high  or  luxurious  beds,  and  (10)  the  handling  of  money. 
Those  who  attached  themselves  to  the  teaching  of  the 
Brethren,  but  remained  laymen,   were  required  to  obey 
the  first  five  of  these  injunctions — all  of  which,  it  will  be 
noticed,  are  of  a  negative  character;  but  in  the  case  of 
laymen,  the  third  commandment  is  taken  to  mean  only 
the  avoidance  of  adultery. 

Practically  all  these  rules  are  taken  over  from  Brahmanic 
sources.  This  is  more  particularly  evident  in  other 
passages  of  the  canonical  books  where  lay  morality  is 
expounded  in  greater  detail.  When  matters  are  referred 
130 


Ethics 

to  Gautama  for  his  decision,  or  to  the  Brethren,  the  deci- 
sion given  evidently  accords  with  current  public  opinion ; 
marriage  and  family  life  are  not  directly  attacked,  it  is 
merely  pointed  out  that  the  secular  life  does  not  lead 
to  emancipation  from  rebirth  and  suffering.^  We  have 
indeed  in  some  books  a  detailed  exposition  of  the  mutual 
duties  of  children  and  parents,  man  and  wife,  master  and 
servant.  These  injunctions  lay  down  just  those  duties 
which  are  acknowledged  in  the  Brahmanical  works,  and 
indicate  a  blameless  mode  of  life,  where  special  stress  is 
laid  on  not  injuring  others,  support  of  parents,  and  the 
giving  of  alms  to  the  Brethren.  This  is  the  next  best 
condition  to  that  of  the  Wanderer,  who  is  a  member  of 
the  Order,  and  '  homeless.'  The  duties  of  laymen  are  set 
forth  in  the  Sigdlavada  Sutta  under  six  heads :  parents 
should  restrain  their  children  from  vice,  train  them  in 
virtue,  have  them  taught  arts  and  sciences,  provide  them 
with  suitable  wives  or  husbands,  and  give  them  their 
inheritance :  children  should  support  those  who  have 
supported  them,  perform  family  duties,  guard  their  parents' 
property,  make  themselves  worthy  to  be  their  heirs,  and 
finally  honour  their  memory.  Pupils  should  honour  their 
teachers  by  rising  in  their  presence,  by  ministering  to 
them,  by  obeying  them,  by  supplying  their  wants,  and  by 
attention  to  instruction ;  the  teacher  should  show  affection 

*  But  the  superiority  of  the  homeless  life  is  again  and  again  emphasized, 
e.g.  "Full  of  hindrances  is  the  household  life,  a  path  defiled  by 
passion :  free  as  air  is  the  path  of  him  who  has  renounced  all  worldly 
things.  How  difficult  it  is  for  the  man  who  dwells  at  home  to  live  the 
higher  Hfe  in  all  its  fulness,  in  all  its  purity,  in  all  its  bright  perfection  ! 
Let  me  then  cut  off  my  hair  and  beard,  let  me  clothe  myself  in  the 
orange-coloured  robes,  and  let  me  go  forth  from  a  household  life  into 
the  homeless  state." — Tevijja  Sutta.  "  It  is  easy  to  obtain  righteous- 
ness in  the  forest,  but  not  so  for  a  householder."— ya/a/v-awa/d  of  Arya 
Silra,  xxxii. 


131 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

for  his  pupils  by  training  them  in  all  that  is  good,  teaching 
them  to  hold  knowledge  fast,  instructing  them  in  science 
and  lore,  speaking  well  of  them,  and  by  guarding  them 
from  danger.  The  husband  should  treat  his  wife  with 
respect  and  kindness,  be  faithful  to  her,  cause  her  to  be 
honoured  by  others,  and  give  her  suitable  clothes  and 
jewels  :  she  should  order  the  household  duly,  be  hospitable 
to  kinsmen  and  friends,  be  chaste  and  thrifty,  and  in 
all  matters  exhibit  skill  and  diligence.  A  man  should 
minister  to  his  friends  by  presents,  courteous  speech, 
promote  their  interests,  treat  them  as  equals,  and  share 
with  them  his  prosperity;  they  should  watch  over  him 
when  he  is  off  his  guard,  protect  his  property  when  he  is 
careless,  offer  him  a  refuge  in  danger,  adhere  to  him  in 
misfortune,  and  show  kindness  to  his  family.  The  master 
should  care  for  his  dependents  by  apportioning  their  work 
according  to  their  strength,  giving  suitable  food  and 
wages,  tending  them  in  sickness,  sharing  with  them  unusual 
delicacies,  and  giving  them  occasional  holidays;  they 
should  rise  before  him,  retire  later  to  rest,  be  content 
with  what  is  given  them,  work  cheerfully  and  well,  and 
speak  well  of  him.  A  layman  should  minister  to  Bhikkhus 
and  to  Brahmans  by  affection  in  thought,  word,  and  deed, 
by  giving  them  a  ready  welcome,  and  by  supplying  their 
temporal  needs;  and  they  should  dissuade  him  from  vice, 
exhort  him  to  virtue,  feel  kindly  to  him,  instruct  him  in 
religion,  clear  up  his  doubts,  and  point  the  way  to  heaven. 
' '  And  by  thus  acting  the  six  airts  (N.,S.,E.,W.,  Zenith,  and 
Nadir)  are  preserved  in  peace  and  free  from  danger." 
We  may  also  remark  of  the  Brethren  and  Sisters,  that 
though  the  practice  of  good  works  is  by  no  means 
enjoined,  they  were  constantly  engaged  with  what  we 
should  now  call  moral  education,  and  to  a  considerable 
132 


Ethics 

extent,  and  more  so  in  later  times,  with  education  and 
learning  in  general.  On  the  whole,  it  can  hardly  be 
controverted  that  Buddhist  monasticism  has  been  a  true 
benefit  to  every  country  where  it  has  been  introduced, 
and  that  in  India  also  Buddhism  as  a  whole  contributed 
valuable  and  specific  elements  to  the  permanent  improve- 
ment of  current  standards  of  social  ethics. 
It  will  be  a  useful  commentary  on  the  present  section  to 
append  the  following  quotation  descriptive  of  popular 
morality  in  Buddhist  Ceylon,  where  the  social  influence 
of  early  Buddhism  may  fairly  be  credited  with  a  con- 
siderable part  of  popular  culture : 

"There  is  annually  a  gathering  from  all  parts  of  the 
Island  at  Anuradhapura  to  visit  what  are  called  sacred 
places.  I  suppose  about  20,000  people  come  here, 
remain  for  a  few  days,  and  then  leave.  There  are  no 
houses  for  their  reception,  but  under  the  grand  umbrage 
of  trees  of  our  park-like  environs  they  erect  their  little 
booths  and  picnic  in  the  open  air.  As  the  height  of  the 
festival  approaches,  the  place  becomes  instinct  with  life ; 
and  when  there  is  no  room  left  to  camp  in,  the  later 
comers  unceremoniously  take  possession  of  the  verandas 
of  the  public  buildings.  So  orderly  is  their  conduct, 
however,  that  no  one  thinks  of  disturbing  them.  The 
old  Kacceri  (Government  Office)  stands,  a  detached 
building  not  far  from  the  bazaar,  and  about  one-eighth 
of  a  mile  from  the  Assistant-Agent's  house.  Till  lately 
the  treasure  used  to  be  lodged  in  a  little  iron  box  that 
a  few  men  could  easily  run  away  with,  guarded  by  three 
native  treasury  watchers.  There  lay  this  sum  of  money, 
year  after  year,  at  the  mercy  of  any  six  men  who  chose 
to  run  with  it  into  the  neighbouring  jungle — once  in 
detection  was  almost  impossible — and  yet  no   one  ever 

133 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

supposed  the  attempt  would  be  made.  These  20,000 
men  from  all  parts  of  the  country  come  and  go  annually 
without  a  single  policeman  being  here;  and,  as  the 
Magistrate  of  the  district,  I  can  only  say  that  any  to 
surpass  their  decorum  and  sobriety  of  conduct  it  is 
impossible  to  conceive.  Such  a  thing  as  a  row 
is  unheard  of." — Report  of  the  Government  Agent, 
Anuradhapura,  Ceylon,  1870. 

To  this   we  may  add  the  testimony  of  Knox,  who  was 
a  prisoner  in  the  interior  of  Ceylon  late  in  the  seventeenth 
century.     He  says  that  the  proverb.    Take  a  ploughman 
fro7n  the  plough^  andzvash  off  his  dirt^  and  he  is  fit  to  mle 
a  kingdom^  "  was  spoken  of  the  people  of  Cande  Uda  .  .  . 
because  of  the  civility,  understanding,  and  gravity  of  the 
poorest   among   them."     Their  ordinary  ploughmen,  he 
adds,  and  husbandmen,  "  do  speak  elegantly,  and  are  full 
of  complement.     And  there  is  no  difference  between  the 
ability  and  speech  of  a  Countryman  and  a  Courtier." 
But  perhaps  the  best  idea  of  the  ethical  consequences  of 
Buddhist   modes  of  thought  will  be  gathered  from  the 
following  Japanese  criticism   of   Western    Industrialism, 
originally  published  in  the  Japan  Daily  Mail  (1890)  by 
Viscount   Torio,    who   was   deeply   versed   in   Buddhist 
philosophy,  and  also  held  high  rank  in  the  Japanese  army : 
"Order  or  disorder  in  a  nation  does  not  depend  upon 
something  that  falls  from  the  sky  or  rises  from  the  earth. 
It  is  determined  by  the  disposition  of  the  people.     The 
pivot  on  which  the  public  disposition  turns  is  the  point 
where  public  and  private  motives  separate.     If  the  people 
be  influenced  chiefly  by  public  considerations,    order  is 
assured ;    if  by  private,  disorder   is   inevitable.      Public 
considerations  are  those  that  prompt  the  proper  observ- 
ance  of    duties.  .  .  .  Private    considerations   are    those 
134 


Ethics 

suggested  by  selfish  motives.  ...  To  regard  our  family 
affairs  with  all  the  interest  due  to  our  family  and  our 
national  affairs  with  all  the  interest  due  to  the  nation,  this 
is  to  fitly  discharge  our  duty,  and  to  be  guided  by  public 
considerations.  .  .  .  Selfishness  is  born  in  every  man; 
to  indulge  it  freely  is  to  become  a  beast.  Therefore  it  is 
that  Sages  preach  the  principles  of  duty  and  propriety, 
justice  and  morality,  providing  restraints  for  private  aims 
and  encouragement  for  public  spirit.  .  .  .  What  we 
know  of  Western  civilization  is  that  it  struggles  on 
through  long  centuries  in  a  confused  condition,  and 
finally  attained  a  state  of  some  order;  but  that  even 
this  order,  not  being  based  upon  such  principles  as  those 
of  the  natural  and  immutable  relations  between  sovereign 
and  subject,  parent  and  child,  with  all  their  correspond- 
ing rights  and  duties,  is  liable  to  constant  change, 
according  to  the  growth  of  human  ambitions  and  human 
aims.  Admirably  suited  to  persons  whose  actions  are 
controlled  by  selfish  ambition,  the  adoption  of  this 
system  in  Japan  is  naturally  sought  by  a  certain  class 
of  politicians.  From  a  superficial  point  of  view,  the 
Occidental  form  of  society  is  very  attractive,  inasmuch 
as  being  the  outcome  of  a  free  development  of  human 
desires  from  ancient  times,  it  represents  the  very  extreme 
of  luxury  and  extravagance.  Briefly  speaking,  the  state 
of  things  obtaining  in  the  West  is  based  upon  the  free 
play  of  human  selfishness,  and  can  only  be  reached  by 
giving  full  sway  to  that  quality.  Social  disturbances  are 
little  heeded  in  the  Occident;  yet  they  are  at  once  the 
evidences  and  the  factors  of  the  present  evil  state  of 
affairs.  ...  In  the  Orient,  from  ancient  times,  national 
government  has  been  based  on  benevolence,  and  directed 
to  securing  the  welfare  and  happiness  of  the  people.     No 

135 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

political  creed  has  ever  held   that   intellectual   strength 
should    be    cultivated    for    the    purpose    of    exploiting 
inferiority    and    ignorance.  .  .  .  Now,    to     satisfy    the 
needs  of  one  luxurious  man,   the  toil  of  a  thousand  is 
needed.     Surely  it  is  monstrous  that  those  who  owe  to 
labour    the    pleasures    suggested    by   their    civilization 
should  forget  what  they  owe  to  the  labourer,  and  treat 
him  as  if  he  were  not  a  fellow  being.     But  civilization, 
according  to  the  Occident,  serves   only  to   satisfy   men 
of  large  desires.     It  is  of  no  benefit  to  the  masses,  but 
is  simply  a  system  under  which   ambitions   compete  to 
establish   their    aims.  .  .  .  That  the  Occidental   system 
is  gravely  disturbing  to  the  order  and  peace  of  a  country 
is  seen  by  men  who  have  eyes,  and  heard  by  men  who 
have  ears.     The  future  of  Japan  under  such  a  system  fills 
us  with  anxiety.     A  system  based  on  the  principle  that 
ethics  and  religion  are  made  to  serve  human  ambition 
naturally  accords  with  the  wishes  of  selfish  individuals; 
and   such   theories   as  those   embodied   in    the   modern 
formula  of  liberty  and  equality  annihilate  the  established 
relations  of  society,  and  outrage  decorum  and  propriety. 
.  .  .  Absolute    equality  and   absolute    liberty  being  un- 
attainable,  the  limits  prescribed  by  right  and  duty  are 
supposed  to  be  set.     But  as  each  person  seeks  to  have 
as  much  right  and  to  be  burdened  with  as  little  duty  as 
possible,   the  results  are  endless  disputes  and  legal  con- 
tentions. ...  It    is    plain    that    if    the    mutual    rights 
of  men  and  their  status  are  made  to  depend  on  degrees 
of   wealth,    the   majority   of   the  people,    being   without 
wealth,  must  fail  to  establish  their  rights ;  whereas  the 
minority  who  are  wealthy  will  assert  their  rights,  and, 
under   society's   sanction,    will   exact   oppressive    duties 
from  the  poor,   neglecting  the  dictates  of  humanity  and 
136 


Conscience 

benevolence.  The  adoption  of  these  principles  of  liberty 
and  equality  in  Japan  would  vitiate  the  good  and  peaceful 
customs  of  our  country,  render  the  general  disposition  of 
the  people  harsh  and  unfeeling,  and  prove  finally  a  source 
of  calamity  to  the  masses.  .  .  .  Though  at  first  sight  Occi- 
dental civilization  presents  an  attractive  appearance, 
adapted  as  it  is  to  the  gratification  of  selfish  desires,  yet, 
since  its  basis  is  the  hypothesis  that  men's  wishes  con- 
stitute natural  laws,  it  must  ultimately  end  in  disappoint- 
ment and  demoralization.  .  .  .  Occidental  nations  have 
become  what  they  are  after  passing  through  conflicts  and 
vicissitudes  of  the  most  serious  kind.  .  .  .  Perpetual 
disturbance  is  their  doom.  Peaceful  equality  can  never 
be  attained  until  built  up  among  the  ruins  of  annihilated 
Western  States  and  the  ashes  of  extinct  Western  peoples."^ 

VI.  CONSCIENCE 

It  has  often  been  objected  as  against  Buddhism  that 
while  its  moral  code  is  admirable,  it  provides  no  sanction, 
or  no  sufficient  sanctions,  for  morality.  And  we  may  say 
at  once,  that  since  the  '  individual  '  does  not  exist,  there 
can  be  no  question  of  reward  or  punishment  for  the 
individual,  and  therefore  there  is  no  sanction  for  morality 
based  on  reward  or  punishment  affecting  the  individual 
in  the  future.  Neither  does  Buddhism  name  any  God 
from  whom  have  proceeded  Tables  of  the  Law  invested 
with  supernatural  authority.  The  true  Buddhist,  how- 
ever, does  not  need  to  be  coerced  by  hopes  of  heaven  or 
fears  of  hell ;  nor  can  he  imagine  a  higher  sanction  than 
that  of  reason  (Truth). ^ 

*  Lafcadio  Hearn,  y<z/a«,  p.  241. 

2  Those  who  do  not  admit  the  sufificiency  of  reason  cannot  be  called 
Buddhists;  at  the  same  time  it  cannot  be  argued  by  such  a  priori,  that 

137 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Since  Buddhism  is  essentially  a  practical  system,  psycho- 
logical and  ethical,  rather  than  philosophical  or  religious, 
it  may  very  justly  demand  to  be  judged  by  its  fruits,  and 
it  has  no  need  to  fear  comparisons. 

At  the  same  time  it  will  throw  some  light  on  Buddhist 
thought  if  we  inquire  what  in  Buddhism  corresponds  to 
'conscience.'  Conscience — to  define  the  English  word 
— is  an  internal  moral  judgment  upon  the  motives  and 
actions  of  the  individual,  and  as  such  is  an  undeniable 
fact  of  consciousness  ;  it  automatically  and  instantly  refers 
all  activities  to  a  moral  standard.  This  moral  standard 
in  a  theistic  system  like  the  old  Semitic  is  formulated  in 
a  series  of  commandments :  in  an  atheistic  system  of  self- 
assertion  such  as  is  implicitly  acknowledged  in  competitive 
societies  (modern  Industrialism)  there  exist  similar  com- 
mandments, but  admittedly  man-made  and  recorded  in 
legal  codes ;  he  who  breaks  no  laws  has  there  a  good 
conscience.  In  idealistic  systems  such  as  that  of  Jesus, 
the  moral  standard  is  resumed  in  the  principle,  to  love 
one's  neighbour  as  oneself,  a  position  which  the  monist 
justifies  by  adding,  for  thy  neighbour  is  thyself  indeed. 
Thus  in  its  lowest  form,  conscience,  which  is  already 
recognizable  in  certain  of  the  lower  animals,  consists  in 
little  more  than  the  fear  of  punishment,  which,  however, 

for  true  Buddhists,  reason  may  not  be  a  sufficient  sanction.  As  said 
by  C.  A.  F.  Rhys  Davids  {Psalms  of  the  Sisters,  p.  xxix),  "are  we  sure 
we  have  gauged  the  working  of  all  human  hearts  and  every  touch  to 
which  they  will  respond?"  It  is  noteworthy  that  in  the  thirty-four 
edicts  of  Asoka  advocating  moral  behaviour,  there  is  only  one  allusion  to 
the  word  of  the  Buddha  as  such  ;  the  only  sanction,  in  the  sense  of  motive 
for  morality,  is  the  welfare  of  the  individual  and  the  common  welfare. 
The  idea  of  promoting  the  welfare  of  all  beings  is  deeply  rooted  in  Indian 
sentiment,  and  an  activity  devoted  to  that  end  would  scarcely  have 
seemed  to  require  a  further  motive,  whether  to  Buddhist  or  Brahman. 

138 


Conscience 

may  soon  develop  into  a  sense  of  *  sin '  which  does  not 
altogether  depend  on  fear,  but  is  largely  a  matter  of  con- 
vention. Another  and  higher  aspect  of  conscience  is 
based  on  reason,  the  knowledge  of  cause  and  effect — a 
full  realization  that  evil  actions  must  sooner  or  later  recoil 
on  the  doer,  and  the  reflection,  on  the  other  hand,  that  all 
beings  are  like-natured,  and  therefore  it  must  be  right 
to  do  to  others  as  one  would  have  them  do  to  oneself.  A 
third  and  still  higher  form  of  conscience  arises  from  the 
intuition  (O.E.  inwit)  of  identity  :  a  bad  conscience  then 
signifies  a  consciousness  of  selfish  motive  equivalent  to  a 
denial  of  the  inner  relation  of  unity  to  which  the  con- 
science is  witness. 

The  Buddhist  sati,  mindfulness  or  recollectiveness,  is  to 
be  identified  with  the  conscience  based  on  reason.  It 
works  not  so  much  through  the  fear  of  consequence,  as 
by  a  sense  of  the  futility  of  admitting  hindrances  to 
spiritual  progress.  He  that  is  recollected  reniinds\i\ms^{ 
of  natural  law,  viz.  the  coming-to-be  as  the  result  of  a 
cause,  and  the  passing-away-again,  of  all  phenomena, 
physical  or  mental.  To  act  as  if  this  actual  fact  of 
Becoming  were  not  a  fact,  would  be  foolish,  sentimental, 
wrong.  Whoever  realizes,  "all  existences  are  non-ego," 
he  cannot  act  from  selfish  motives,  for  he  knows  no  self. 
To  many  Western  minds  it  may  appear '  that  to  be  ever 
mindful  of  impermanence  cannot  be  a  sufficient  sanction 
for  morality.  Nor  can  it  be  pretended  that  such  a  sanction 
would  or  does  suffice  for  all.  Those,  for  example — 
perhaps  the  majority  of  professing  Buddhists — who  regard 
a  heaven  to  be  reached  after  death,  perform  meritorious 
actions  in  order  to  attain  it.  But  for  those  who  understand 
the  true  significance  of  Nibbana,  ethical  behaviour  is 
derived  from  a  categorical  inner  imperative,  "  because  of 

139 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Nibbana."  ^  Since  the  highest  good  is  a  state  of  mind 
(the  state  of  mind  of  the  Arahat,  who  is  delivered  from 
desire,  resentment,  and  glamour),  every  ethical  activity 
must  be  judged  as  a  means  to  the  attainment  of  that  state. 
A  bad  conscience,  then,  a  state  of  sin,  would  be  described 
by  a  Buddhist  as  a  state  of  mind  contrary  to  Nibbana. 
It  may  seem  that  "  Because  of  Nibbana  "  is  not  a  sufficient 
ethical  motif.  In  the  same  way  even  the  true  Buddhist 
might  fail  to  understand  the  force  of  the  Christian  "  Thy 
will  be  done,"  "Thy  way,  not  mine,  O  Lord,"  or  of  the 
resignation  signified  in  '  Islam.'  Yet  all  these  refer  to 
one  and  the  same  inner  experience,  of  which  we  are 
reminded  by  the  Sufi,  when  he  says :  "  Whoso  hath  not 
surrendered  will,  no  will  hath  he."  Most  probably  the 
force  of  these  statements  can  never  be  made  fully  apparent 
to  those  who  have  not  yet  in  their  own  consciousness 
experienced  at  least  the  beginning  of  the  turning  of 
the  personal  will  from  affirmation  to  denial.  But  just  in 
so  far  as  a  man  allows  his  thoughts  and  actions  to  be 
determined  by  impersonal  motive — Anatta  or  Nibbana 
motive,  as  a  Buddhist  might  say — so  far  he  begins  to  taste 
of  a  peace  that  passes  understanding.  It  is  this  peace 
which  lies  at  the  heart  of  all  religion,  and  Buddhism  may 
well  claim  that  the  principle  "  Because  of  Nibbana  "  suffices 
to  settle  in  the  affirmative  the  question  whether  or  not  the 
system  of  Gautama  is  properly  described  as  a  religion 
(though  this  expression  suggests  rather  a  Mahayana  than 
an  early  mode  of  thought). 

^  Shwe  Zan  Aung,  Buddhist  Review^  iii,  2,  p.  107.  Cf.  Clive  Bell, 
Art,  ii,  iii,  and  G.  E.  Moore,  Principia  Ethica. 

Cf.  Shikshasamuccaya  of  Shanti  Ueva,  vv.  21,  23:  "Make  thy  merit 
pure  by  deeds  full  of  the  spirit  of  tenderness  and  the  Void.  .  .  ,  Increase 
of  enjoyment  is  from  almsgiving  full  of  the  spirit  of  tenderness  and  the 

Void." 

140 


Spiritual  Exercises 

That  aspect  of  conscience  which  inhibits  wrong  activities 
— it  will  be  remembered  that  most  of  the  early  Buddhist 
commandments  are  negative — is,  then,  sati  or  recollected- 
ness.  There  is,  however,  another  side  to  conscience 
which  impels  the  individual  not  merely  to  refrain  from 
injuring  others,  but  to  expend  himself  to  their  advantage, 
in  accordance  with  the  principle  that  Love  can  never  be 
idle  :  this  is  spoken  of,  in  Mahayana  Buddhism,  as  the 
BodhUitta,  or  Heart  of  Enlightenment.  It  differs  from 
sati  chiefly  in  its  spontaneity ;  it  does  not  arise  from 
reflection,  but  from  the  harmony  of  the  individual  will 
with  the  wisdom  and  activity  of  the  Buddhas.  This  con- 
dition is  sometimes  spoken  of  in  Western  books  of  edifi- 
cation as  a  state  of  grace,  or  more  popularly  as  the  state 
of  '  being  in  tune  with  the  Infinite.'  But  a  very  excellent 
rendering  of  'bodhi-citta '  may  be  found  in  Feltham's 
'  shoot  of  everlastingnesse ' '}  this  phrase  is  the  more 
appropriate,  because  the  awakening  of  the  bodhi-citta  is 
poetically  represented  in  Buddhist  literature  as  the  open- 
ing of  the  lotus  of  the  heart. 

The  two  states  of  mind  which  in  Buddhism  correspond  to 
the  Western  idea  of  conscience,  are  then,  rccollected7iess, 
and  love\  and  it  is  from  these  conditions  that  there 
naturally  flow  all  those  conceptions  of  the  good  which  are 
defined  at  length  in  the  Buddhist  passages  on  ethics. 

VII.  SPIRITUAL  EXERCISES 
A  regular  part  of  the  daily  work  of  the  members  of  the 
Saneha — whether  Brethren  or  Sisters — consisted   in  the 
practice    of   certain    contemplations.     These    stations  of 

1  "The  Conscience,  the  Character  of  a  God  stampt  in  it,  and  the 
Apprehension  oi  Eternity  doe  all  prove  it  a  shoot  of  everlastingnesse." — 
Feltham's  Resolves. 

141 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

meditation  differ  only  in  minor  details  from  those  which 
are  regularly  practised  by  Indian  ascetics  of  other  orders. 
With  characteristic  systematization,  these  modes  of 
training  heart  and  mind  are  often  spoken  of  as  forty- 
four  in  number.  How  essentially  self-educational  is  the 
purpose  of  these  stations  of  meditation  appears  from  the 
fact  that  certain  ones  are  appointed  for  persons  of  one 
temperament,  and  certain  others  for  those  of  other  tem- 
peraments. I  have  spoken  of  these  meditations  delibe- 
rately as  *  work,'  because  it  is  important  to  understand 
that  we  do  not  speak  here  of  any  simple  matter  such  as 
day-dream  or  reverie,  but  of  a  severe  system  of  mental 
training,  founded  on  an  elaborate  psychology,  and  well 
calculated — now  by  auto-suggestion,  now  by  close  atten- 
tion— to  produce  the  type  of  character  aimed  at. 

Training  of  the  Heart 

The  first  meditations  are  of  an  ethical  character,  and  in 
some  respects  may  be  compared  to  prayer.  They  consist 
in  cherishing  the  moods  {bhavanas)  of  loving-kindness, 
compassion,  sympathy,  and  impartiality  {niettd,  kaj^icnd, 
muditd,  and  icpekkkd).  These  are  called  the  Four  Illimit- 
able Sublime  Moods  [Bmhmavihdras).  The  meditation 
on  Loving-kindness,  for  example,  consists  in  the  emphasis 
of  this  feeling,  the  active  radiation  of  goodwill  in  all 
directions  and  toward  all  forms  of  life:  and  whoever  will 
practise  this  one  Buddhist  exercise  daily  at  a  fixed  hour, 
for  a  fixed  time,  and  with  entire  attention,  though  he 
learn  little  else  of  Buddhism,  may  be  judge  for  himself 
what  is  the  development  of  character  to  which  it  tends. 
Perhaps  we  can  best  understand  what  the  Four  Sublime 
Moods  really  signify  by  considering  their  equivalents  in 
the  thought  of  a  modern.  When  Walt  Whitman  says  : 
142 


and 


Training  of  the  Heart 

/  do  not  ask  you  who  yoti  arc,  that  is  not  ivipoj-tant 

to  me. 
You  can  do  nothing  and  be  nothing  but  what  I  will 

infold  you. 


When  I  give,  I  give  myself, 
that  is  metta.     When  he  says  : 

/  do  not  ask  the  wou7ided person  how  he  feels,  I 

myself  become  the  luoimdcd person. 
My  hurts  turn  livid  upoji  me  as  I  lean  on  a  cane 

and  observe, 

that  is  karuna.     When  he  says  : 

/  7mderstand  the  large  hearts  of  heroes. 

The  courage  of  present  times  and  all  times.  .  .  . 

/  am  the  man,  I  suffered,  I  was  there, 

that  is  mudita.     When  he  says  : 

Have  you  outstripped  the  rest?  Are  you  the 
President  ?  ^ 

It  is  a  trifle,  they  will  more  than  arrive  there  every- 
one, and  still  pass  on, 

that  is  upekkha. 

The  purely  intellectual  character  of  upekkha,  however 
(which  as  it  were  corrects  and  balances  the  three  other 
Sublime  Moods),  is  better  explained  perhaps  by  the 
Bhagavad  Glta  (v.  i8)  :  "  They  that  are  pandits  indeed, 
reo-ard  alike  a  wise  and  modest  Brahman,  a  cow,  an 
elephant,  or  even  a  dog  or  an  outcaste."    We  are  remmded 

1  If  for  'President,'  we  read  'Indra'  or  '  Brahma '—precisely  the 
Presidents  of  the  deva-world  and  of  the  whole  Universe,  holding  office 
only  for  the  time  being — we  can  understand  these  lines  in  a  thoroughly 
Buddliist  sense. 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

of  the  sun  that  shines  alike  upon  the  evil  and  the  good  ; 
and  Buddhism  also  knows  of  special  meditations  upon 
the  elements,  e.£:  upon  the  earth,  which  harbours  no 
resentment,  and  is  the  Indian  symbol  of  patience,  or  upon 
water,  which  becomes  again  transparent  and  clear,  what- 
ever mud  or  filth  is  cast  into  it.  The  Buddhist  would  at 
all  costs  avoid  sentimentality  and  partiality:  Gautama, 
perhaps,  had  reflected,  like  Nietzsche,  "  Ah,  where  in 
the  world  have  there  been  greater  follies  than  with  the 
pitiful?" 

With  the  Four  Meditations  just  mentioned  is  associated 
another  {asubha-bhavana),  on  "  Foul  things."  This  very 
different  contemplation  is  appointed  for  those  whose 
emotional  nature  is  already  active  enough,  but  are 
on  the  other  hand  too  readily  moved  by  the  thought  or 
sight  of  physical  beauty,  or  feel  a  pride  in  their  own 
physical  perfection.  The  object  of  this  meditation  is  to 
impress  on  the  mind  that  every  living  organism  is  subject 
to  change  and  decay ;  the  practice  consists  in  the  contem- 
plation of  human  bones  or  half-decayed  corpses,  such  as 
may  be  seen  in  an  Indian  burial-ground. 
It  would  be  difficult  to  secure  for  this  discipline  the 
sympathy  of  modern  minds.  Nor  does  the  method 
appear  quite  calculated  to  secure  the  desired  end;  may  it 
not  rather  enhance  the  value  of  the  fleeting  moment  to 
reflect — 

Such  is  the  beauty  of  a  maid — 

Like  autumn  leaves  they  fall  and  fade  ? 

Not  all  the  analytic  lore  of  the  physiologist  makes  him 
any  the  less  susceptible  to  love.  If  we  neglect,  however, 
this  purely  monastic  aspect  of  a  rather  futile  endeavour  to 
induce  disgust  by  artificial  means,  and  remember  how 
144 


Training  of  the  Heart 

Buddhist  thought  is  always  on  guard  to  avoid  senti- 
mentality, we  may  understand  such  a  meditation  as  a 
corrective  to  the  temperament  which  falls  in  love  with  all 
that  is  new  and  fair,  and  admires  only  such  art  as  repre- 
sents the  charms  of  youth  and  beauty.  But  it  seems  to 
be  overlooked  that  physical  beauty  is  in  itself  and  so  far 
a  good.  He  that  would  go  further  must  renounce  indul- 
gence, not  because  that  indulgence  is  bad,  but  because  he 
has  other  and  stronger  desires.  The  true  ascetic  is  not 
he  who  is  such  by  a  species  of  mental  violence,^  but  he 
who  is  thinking  of  other  things  than  passing  goods. 
With  regard  to  the  purpose  of  these  meditations :  we  may 
observe  that  they  are  not  intended  for  ascetics  only,  but 
equally  for  laymen,  and  must  have  resulted  in  active 
deeds  of  compassion.  Buddhist  thought,  however,  is 
more  concerned  with  states  of  mind  than  with  direct 
injunctions  to  labour  for  others  ;  and  the  true  purpose  of 
the  Four  Sublime  Moods  is  to  correct  the  disposition 
of  those  who  are  ill-tempered  and  uncharitable.  To 
overcome  resentment  is  essential  to  all  further  progress ; 
but  the  Sublime  Moods  by  themselves  lead  only  to  re- 
birth in  the  Brahma  Heavens  of  Form.  In  the  subsequent 
development  toward  Nibbana  the  Sublime  Moods  are 
overpast,  since  they  are  directed  toward  other  persons, 
while  the  thought  of  the  most  advanced  is  directed 
only  to  Nibbana.  For  the  realization  of  Nibbana 
there  must  be  put  away  not  only  bad  states  of  mind, 
but  also  good  ones.  The  former  lead  to  rebirth  under 
painful  conditions,  the  latter  to  rebirth  under  favour- 
able conditions ;  but  neither  constitutes  the  saving 
knowledge  which  gives  emancipation.     Buddha  is  made, 

^  The  saying  of  the  poet,  that  "  Desires  suppressed  breed  pestilence," 
is  confirmed  by  the  researches  of  the  psycho-analyst. 

K  145 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

in  the  Buddha-cajita  of  Asvaghosha  (vii,  25),  to  speak  of 
these  efforts  as  follows : 

"  It  is  not  the  effort  itself  which  I  blame,  which  flinging 
aside  the  base  pursues  a  high  path  of  its  own ;  but  the 
wise,  by  all  this  common  toil,  ought  to  attain  that  state  in 
which  nothing  needs  ever  to  be  done  again." 

Jhdna 

A  further  group  of  meditations  consists  of  the  Jhanas  or 
Dhyanas  strictly  so-called;  these,  too,  are  disciplines  of 
attention  and  abstraction  almost  identical  with  those  which 
are  better  known  as  belonging  to  Yoga. 
"Blessed  art  thou,  therefore,"  says  Behmen,  *'if  thou 
canst  stand  still  from  self-thinking  and  self-willing,  and 
canst  stop  the  wheel  of  thy  imagination  and  thy  senses ; 
forasmuch  as  hereby  thou  mayst  arrive  at  length  to  see 
the  great  Salvation  of  God,  being  made  capable  of  all 
manner  of  divine  sensations  and  heavenly  communica- 
tions. Since  it  is  nought  indeed  but  thine  own  hearing 
and  willing  that  do  hinder  thee."  Just  as  the  mystic  seeks 
to  be  abstracted  from  mental  activity,  in  order  the  better 
to  know  the  One  Reality,  in  just  the  same  way  the  Bud- 
dhist makes  a  practice  of  abstraction  that  he  may  be 
delivered  from  self-thinkingi  and  may  come  to  know 
things  as  they  really  are.  If  we  omit  the  two  words  '  of 
God'  in  the  above  quotation,  or  remember  that  God  is 
No-thing,  it  will  exactly  explain  the  character  and  ultimate 
purpose  of  the  Buddhist  Jhanas. 

One  series  of  these  consists  in  meditation  upon  certain 
set  objects — for  example,  a  circle  of  smooth  earth — in 
such  a  way  as  to  separate  oneself  from  all  appetite  or  im- 
pulse in  connexion  with  them.  This  exercise  recalls  the 
disinterestedness  of  aesthetic  contemplation,  where  the 
146 


r^^r^'^ 


Plate  K 


Till",   BUDDHA   IN  SAMADHI 
Colossal  image  at  Anuradhapura,  Ceylon,  ca.  2nd  century  a.d. 


146 


Jhana 

spectator  "  is  from  himself  set  free"  ;  the  Buddhist  Jhana 
aims  to  attain  the  same  result  in  a  more  mechanical  way. 
This  contemplation  prepares  the  way  for  higher  things, 
and  by  itself  leads  to  favourable  rebirth  in  the  Heaven  of 
Ideal  Form  {i-upaloka).  The  resulting  trance  is  divided 
into  four  or  five  phases. 

A  further  series,  which  secure  rebirth  in  the  Heaven  of 
No-form  {arupalokd),  consists  in  the  successive  realization 
of  the  stations  of  the  Infinity  of  Space,  of  the  Infinity  of 
Intellection,  of  Emptiness,  and  of  Neither-consciousness- 
nor-unconsciousness.  In  these  exercises  the  aspirant 
experiences,  as  it  were,  a  foretaste  of  the  worlds  of  re- 
becoming  to  which  his  character  will  lead  after  death; 
for  the  moment,  indeed,  he  already  enters  those  worlds. 
These  exercises,  however,  do  not  lead  directly  and  imme- 
diately to  Nibbana,  but  only  to  re-becoming  in  the  more 
ideal  conditions  of  those  higher  other-worlds.  Beyond 
these  stations  there  remained  the  cultivation  of  'thought 
engaged  upon  the  world  beyond '  {lokuttaram  cittani). 
The  method  hardly  differs  from  what  has  been  last 
described,  but  is  without  thought  or  desire  of  any  other 
world,  whether  of  form  or  formless,  and  is  pursued  solely 
with  the  view  to  achieving  perfection  of  insight  here  and 
now.  For  this  reason,  notwithstanding  the  similarity  of 
method,  the  Buddhist  authors  draw  a  sharp  distinction 
between  the  Jhana  which  leads  to  Nibbana  directly,  and 
those  Jhanas  which  merely  lead  to  rebirth  in  the  Brahma 
Heavens  of  Form  or  No-form. 

The  term  Samddhi  must  also  be  mentioned,  originally 
indicating  any  profound  pious  meditation  or  concentration 
— "  '  citfekaggatd,^  the  one-pointed  state  of  the  mind,  is  a 
synonym  for  samadhi  .  .  .  this  samadhi,  which  is  called 
self-collectedness,    has    as    its    characteristic    mark    the 

147 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

absence  of  wandering,  of  distraction  .  .  .  and  as  its 
concomitants,  calmness,  or  wisdom  .  .  .  and  ease."  ^ 
Samadhi  is  also  divided  under  many  separate  classes,  e.g. 
the  Empty  (suniiata),  the  Signless  (animitta),  and  the 
Aimless  (appanihita),  corresponding  to  the  three  phases  of 
Vimutti  similarly  characterized. 

VIII.   CONSOLATION 

Nothing  is  more  characteristic  of  Gautama's  thought  than 
the  form  of  the  consolation  which  it  offers  to  the  suffering 
individual.  There  is  no  promise  of  future  compensation, 
as  of  a  reunion  in  heaven,  but  there  is  reference  to  the 
universality  of  suffering ;  the  individual  is  led  to  regard 
his  sorrow,  not  as  '  his  own,'  but  as  world  sorrow,  welt- 
schmerz,  inseparable  from  life  itself;  all  sorrow  is  self- 
inflicted,  inherent  in  the  conceit  of  an  I.  Consolation  is 
to  be  found  in  the  '  knowledge  of  things  as  they  really 
are.' 

"The  pilgrimage  of  beings  (Samsara),  my  disciples," 
says  Gautama,  "  has  its  beginning  in  eternity.  No  open- 
ing (first  cause)  can  be  discovered,  whence  proceeding, 
creatures  fettered  by  a  thirst  for  being,  stray  and  wander. 
What  think  ye,  disciples,  whether  is  more,  the  water  which 
is  in  the  four  great  oceans,  or  the  tears  which  have  flowed 
from  you  and  have  been  shed  by  you,  while  ye  strayed  and 
wandered  on  this  long  pilgrimage,  and  sorrowed  and  wept, 
because  that  was  your  portion  which  ye  abhorred  and  that 
which  ye  loved  was  not  your  portion  ?  "  ^  Not  only  has 
each  in  himself  this  long  inheritance  of  suffering,  but  all 
have  experienced  and  still  experience  the  same.  It  is 
related  that  there  came  a  mother,  Gotami  the  Slender,  to 

^  Commentary  on  the  Dhamma-Sangan't. 

2  Saitiyutta  Nikaya,  iii,  149. 

148 


Consolation 

Gautama,  having  lost  her  only  son,  while  yet  a  child. 
Bewildered  by  her  grief,  she  set  the  child's  dead  body  on 
her  hip  and  went  from  door  to  door  crying,  "  Give  me 
medicine  for  my  child  !  "  When  she  came  to  Gautama, 
he  answered,  "  Go  into  the  town,  bring  me  a  little  mus- 
tard-seed from  any  house  where  no  man  hath  yet  died." 
She  went ;  but  there  was  no  family  where  death  had  never 
entered.  At  last,  going  from  house  to  house  in  vain,  she 
came  to  herself,  and  thought,  "This  will  be  the  same 
throughout  the  city  ...  it  is  the  Law,  that  all  things 
pass  away."  So  saying,  she  returned  to  the  master ;  and 
when  he  asked  for  the  seed,  she  said,  "  Wrought  is  the 
work,  lord,  of  the  little  mustard.  Give  thou  me  confirma- 
tion." At  that  time  she  entered  the  First  Path,  and  it 
was  not  long  before  she  attained  to  Arahatta. 
In  another  place,  the  Buddhist  nun  Patacara  is  represented 
as  consoling  many  bereaved  mothers  of  the  city  in  the 
following  words: 

Weep  not,  for  such  is  here  the  life  of  man. 
Unasked  he  came,  unbidden  went  he  hence. 
Lo  !  ask  thyself  again  whence  came  thy  son 
To  bide  on  ea7'th  this  little  breathing  space  ? 
By  one  way  co7ne  and  by  afiot her  gone,  .  .  . 
So  hither  and  so  hence — why  should  ye  weep  ?  ^ 

And  these  mothers  also,  it  is  recorded,  were  moved  to 
leave  the  world  ;  and  practising  as  sisters  the  mental  and 
moral  discipline  of  the  Order,  they  shortly  attained  to 
Arahatta  and  the  ending  of  erief. 

1  C.  A.  F.  Rhys  Davids,  Psahns  of  the  Sisters,  p.  78,  Observe  that 
Patacara's  consolation  differs  little  from  that  of  Sri  Krishna  in  the 
Bhagavad  GitCi  (ii,  27) :  "For  to  the  born,  sure  is  death,  to  the  dead, 
sure  is  birth  :  so  for  an  issue  that  may  not  be  escaped  thou  dost  not 
well  to  sorrow." 

149 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Very  significant  also  is  the  consolation  which  the  Buddha 
offers  to  his  disciples  at  the  time  of  his  own  death.^ 
"Enough,  Ananda!  do  not  let  yourself  be  troubled;  do 
not  weep !  Have  I  not  already,  on  former  occasions,  told 
you  that  it  is  in  the  very  nature  of  all  things  most  near 
and  dear  unto  us  that  we  must  divide  ourselves  from 
them  ?  How,  then,  Ananda,  can  this  be  possible — whereas 
anything  whatever  born,  brought  into  being,  and  organized, 
contains  within  itself  the  inherent  necessity  of  dissolution 
— how,  then,  can  this  be  possible,  that  such  a  being  should 
not  be  dissolved  ?  No  such  condition  can  exist ! " 
It  will  be  remembered  that  Ananda,  though  in  a  measure 
the  favourite  disciple  of  Buddha,  was  also  spiritually  the 
youngest,  the  most  backward,  and  did  not  attain  to 
Arahatta  until  after  the  death  of  the  Buddha.  And  so 
when  that  death  takes  place,  he  is  represented  as  overcome 
by  grief,  and  exclaiming : 

T/ien  was  the  terror  I 
Then  stood  the  hair  on  end! 
When  he  endowed  with  every  grace — 
The  supreme  Buddha — died  I 

and  "  of  those  of  the  Brethren  who  were  not  yet  free  from 
the  passions,  some  stretched  their  arms  and  wept,  and 
some  fell  headlong  on  the  ground,  rolling  to  and  fro  in 
anguish  at  the  thought :  '  Too  soon  has  the  Exalted  One 
died!  Too  soon  has  the  Happy  One  passed  away!  Too 
soon  has  the  Light  gone  out  in  the  world ! '  But  those  of 
the  Brethren  who  were  free  from  the  passions  bore  their 
grief  collected  and  composed  at  the  thought :  '  Impermanent 
are  all  component  things!    How  is  it  possible  that  (they 

^  Compare  with  this  the  death-bed  consolation  of  King  Dutthagamani, 
quoted  p.  300,  below,  from  the  MahCwamsa, 


The  Order 

should  not  be  dissolved)?'"  The  venerable  Anuruddha, 
one  who  had  already  attained,  and  was  an  Arahat,  does 
not  feel  the  personal  and  passionate  grief  which  distresses 

Ananda,  and  he  says : 

» 

When  he  who  from  all  craving  want  was  free 
Who  to  Nii'vana's  tranqnil  state  had  reached 
When  the  great  sage  finished  his  span  of  life 
No  gasping  struggle  vexed  that  steadfast  heart  I 
All  resohite^  aitd  zvith  unshaken  mind 
He  calmly  trinmphed  o^ er  the  paifi  of  death. 
E'en  as  a  biHght  flame  dies  away,  so  was 
The  last  emancipation  of  his  heart. 

While  Sakka,  the  king  of  the  gods  of  heaven,  under 
Brahma,  utters  the  famous  lines : 

They' re  transient  all,  each  being's  parts  and  powers. 
Growth  is  their  very  nature,  and  decay. 
They  a^'-e  produced,  they  are  dissolved  again  : 
To  bring  them  all  into  subjection — that  is  bliss. 

IX.  THE  ORDER 

The  central  institution  of  Hinayana  Buddhism  is  the 
Sangha,  the  '  Company '  of  Brethren,  the  men,  and  in 
smaller  number  the  women,  who  left  the  world  to  walk  on 
the  Path  that  leads  to  Arahatta,  the  attainment  of  Nibbana. 
Gautama  himself,  together  with  his  disciples,  belonged  to 
the  class  of  rcligicux,  then  well-known  as  '  Wanderers ' 
iParibbdjakas),  who  are  to  be  distinguished  from  the 
forest-dwelling  hermits  ( Vdnaprasthas^.  The  Wanderers 
travelled  about  singly  or  in  bands,  or  took  up  their 
residence  for  a  time  in  the  groves  or  buildings  set  apart 
for  their  use  by  good   laymen.     Thus  we   hear  of   the 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

wandering  mendicant  Potthapada,  who  on  a  certain  occa- 
sion "  was  dwelling  at  the  hall  put  up  in  Queen  Mallika's 
Park  for  the  discussion  of  systems  of  opinion  the  hall 
set  round  with  a  row  of  Tinduka  trees,  and  known  by 
the  name  of  'The  Hall.'  And  there  was  with  him  a 
great  following  of  mendicants;  to  wit,  three  hundred 
mendicants."^ 

Such  mendicants,  or  Bhikkhus  (a  term  afterward  coming 
to  have  a  distinctively  Buddhist  significance)  were  often 
associated  in  companies,  under  the  teaching  of  some 
leader,  such  as  the  Potthapada  above  mentioned;  and 
we  hear  amongst  others  of  the  following  orders  with 
members  of  which  Gautama  at  one  time  or  another  enters 
into  argument :  the  Niganthas  (or  Jainas),  led  by  Mahavira ; 
the  Ajivikas;  the  Gotamakas,  followers  most  likely  of 
Devadatta,  the  Buddha's  schismatic  and  ill-minded 
cousin ;  various  Brahmanical  groups,  and  many  others  of 
whose  views  we  know  little.  The  first  of  these  groups 
developed  like  Buddhism  into  an  Order  and  a  religion,  and 
has  survived  in  India  to  the  present  day  with  an  extensive 
literature  and  over  a  million  adherents.  The  Rule 
adopted  by  one  or  the  other  group  of  Wanderers  varied 
in  detail,  but  always  embraced  a  certain  degree  of 
asceticism  (always  including  celibacy),  combined  with 
voluntary  poverty. 

1  T.  W.  Rhys  Davids,  Dialogues  of  the  Buddha^  i,  224.  Professor 
Rhys  Davids  adds  the  following  note  :  "  The  very  fact  of  the  erection 
of  such  a  place  is  another  proof  of  the  freedom  of  thought  prevalent  in 
the  Eastern  valley  of  the  Ganges  in  the  sixth  century  B.C.  Buddha- 
ghosha  tells  us  that  after  '  The  Hall '  had  been  established,  others  near 
it  had  been  built  in  honour  of  various  famous  teachers ;  but  the  group 
of  buildings  continued  to  be  known  as  '  The  Hall.'  There  Brahmans, 
Niganthas,  Achelas,  Paribbajakas,  and  other  teachers  met  and  ex- 
pounded, or  discussed,  their  views." 

152 


Platl   1. 


BLDDllIST    .MuMv    {bhikkhii) 

Chinese,  school  of  Long-men  (8th  century) 

Collection  of  Mr  Victor  Golonhew 


152 


The  Order 

We  can  now  examine  in  greater  detail  the  special  Rule 
which  was  adopted  in  the  Order  founded  by  Gautama, 
and  organized  under  his  immediate  guidance.  We  have 
already  mentioned  the  Ten  Commandments,  or  rather, 
Prohibitions,  which  must  be  observed  by  every  member 
of  the  Order.  The  Brethren  are  also  required  to  wear  a 
monastic  costume  of  yellow  or  orange  cloth,  made  of 
torn  pieces,  sewn  together  so  as  to  have  no  commercial 
value :  to  seek  their  daily  food  as  alms ;  to  abstain  from 
food  between  meals  at  the  appointed  hours :  and  generally, 
to  maintain  a  decorous  behaviour.  But  they  are  not  re- 
quired to  take  any  vow  of  life-long  adhesion — on  the 
contrary,  those  who  find  they  have  no  true  vocation  are 
encouraged  to  return  to  the  world,  where,  if  they  cannot 
attain  Arahatta  in  this  life,  they  may  yet  aspire  to  a  favour- 
able rebirth.  Nor  are  the  Brethren  required  to  take  any 
vow  of  obedience  to  superiors :  all  are  equal,  with  due  allow- 
ance for  seniority,  and  degree  of  spiritual  advancement : 
even  in  large  monasteries,  the  head  is  merely  p7'imiis 
inter  pares.  The  Order  constitutes  thus  a  self-contained 
democracy,  analogous  to  a  guild  or  occupational  caste. 
Discipline  is  maintained  formally  by  the  Order  as  a  whole, 
acting  upon  the  confession  or  proved  fault  of  the  erring 
Brother,  and  appointing,  in  bi-monthly  convocation,  a 
suitable  penance ;  the  heaviest  punishment,  appointed  for 
infringement  of  either  of  the  Four  Cardinal  Sins  (breach 
of  the  vow  of  chastity,  theft,  killing,  and  laying  claim  to 
miraculous  powers),  is  expulsion  from  the  Order;  mention 
is  also  made  in  Asoka's  edicts  of  expulsion  or  unfrocking 
of  heretics  or  schismatics.  An  external  check  is  also 
provided  by  public  opinion,  which  neither  in  the  days  of 
Gautama,  nor  in  modern  Burma  or  Ceylon,  would  tolerate 
the  mere  pretence  of  a  holy  life.     Thus,  says  Mr  Fielding 

153 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Hall,  in  modern  Burma  "the  supervision  exercised  by 
the  people  over  their  monks  is  most  stringent.  As 
long  as  the  monks  act  as  monks  should,  they  are  held  in 
great  honour,  they  are  addressed  by  titles  of  great  respect, 
they  are  supplied  with  all  they  want  within  the  rules  of 
the  Wini  ( Vinaya),  they  are  the  glory  of  the  village.  .  .  . 
Directly  he  breaks  his  laws,  his  holiness  is  gone.  The 
villagers  will  have  none  such  as  he.  They  will  hunt  him 
out  of  the  village,  they  will  refuse  him  food,  they  will 
make  him  a  byword,  a  scorn." 

The  monastery  is  also  in  many  cases  the  village  school ;  ^ 
and  in  Burma  it  is  the  custom  for  almost  every  young 
man  to  take  the  monastic  vows  for  a  short  time,  and  to 
reside  for  that  period  within  the  monastery  walls.  This 
possibility  of  using  the  Order  as  a  '  Retreat '  also  explains 
how  it  was  possible  for  Asoka  to  assume  the  monastic 
robes  without  finally  relinquishing  his  throne. 
It  is  above  all  important  to  realize  that  the  Buddhist 
Brother,  Monk,  Religious  mendicant  (Bhikkhu,  the  word 
in  most  general  use).  Wanderer,  or  however  we  speak  of 
him,  is  not  a  priest.  He  does  not  belong  to  an  apostolic 
succession,  nor  has  he  any  power  to  save  or  condemn,  to 
forgive  sins  or  to  administer  sacraments ;  he  has  no  other 
1  "All  monasteries  are  schools."— Fielding  Hall,  The  Soul  of  a  People. 
Of  course,  teaching  is  not  an  essential  duty  of  the  Brother,  but  a  task 
voluntarily  undertaken.  Similar  conditions  prevailed,  until  recently, 
in  Ceylon:  "Besides  the  relation  in  which  the  priests  stand  to 
their  tenants  as  landlords,  and  the  religious  influence  of  their  possess-ion, 
they  have  other  holds  on  the  possession  of  the  people.  Their  pansalas 
(monasteries)  are  the  schools  for  village  children,  and  the  sons  of  even 
the  superior  headmen  are  very  generally  educated  at  them.  They  have 
also  frequently  some  knowledge  of  medicine,  and  when  this  is  the  case 
they  generally  give  the  benefit  of  their  advice  gratuitously  .  .  .  their 
influence  among  the  people  is,  in  a  social  point  of  view,  usefully 
employed." — Ceylon,  Service  Tenures  Commission  Report,  1872. 


A.     MONASTERY  OF  CHIEH-T'AI-SSU,   NEAR  PEKING 


Plate  M  154 

B.     COURTYARD  OF  THE  PI-YON  TEMPLE,  NEAR  PEKING 

Photographs  by  B.  F.  Johnston 


Tolerance 

sanctity  than  attaches  to  his  own  good  living.  The  care 
of  a  Buddhist  temple  is  no  essential  part  of  his  duties, 
though  in  most  cases  a  temple  is  attached  to  every 
monastery,  and  is  under  the  care  of  the  Brethren,  while 
villaee  shrines  have  their  incumbents  whose  livelihood  is 
provided  by  the  produce  of  lands  dedicated  to  it.  But 
this  care  of  sacred  places  has  no  likeness  to  priestcraft, 
nor  does  the  temple  contain  any  sanctum  which  may  not 
be  approached  as  well  by  laymen  as  by  Brethren. 
Each  monk  is  permitted  eight  possessions  only :  the  three 
robes,  a  waist  cloth,  an  alms  bowl,  a  razor,  a  needle,  and 
a  water-strainer.  The  modern  Bhikkhu  generally  possesses 
in  addition  an  umbrella  and  a  few  books,^  but  the  handling 
of  money  is  carefully  avoided.  Nevertheless  the  hardship 
of  voluntary  poverty  is  largely  mitigated  by  the  fact  that 
the  Order  as  such  is  permitted  to  receive  gifts  and  en- 
dowments from  laymen,  a  practice  begun  even  in  the  time 
of  the  Buddha;  later  Buddhist  monasteries  became  ex- 
tremely wealthy  and  are  well  furnished  with  residences 
for  the  Brethren.  Even  under  these  conditions  the  mode 
of  life  is  extremely  simple,  and  no  one  could  accuse  the 
monks  of  luxury. 

X.   TOLERANCE 

India  is  the  land  of  religious  tolerance.  There  can  be  no 
doubt  that  Gautama  and  his  disciples  extended  to  those 
of  other  persuasions  the  same  courtesy  which  he  received. 
This  is  indicated  not  only  by  the  general  procedure  adopted 
in  the  case  of  argument  with  opponents,  but  also  in  several 
amiable  anecdotes.  We  read,  for  example,  that  Gautama 
converted  at  Vaisali  a  Licchavi  nobleman,  who  had  been 

1  Writing  was  known,  but  books  were  not  in  general  use  when  the 
order  was  founded  :  the  basis  of  learning  was  what  a  man  remembered. 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

a  follower  of  Mahavira :  but  he  advised  him  as  follows : 
"  For  a  long  time,  Siha,  your  house  has  been  a  place  of 
refuge  for  the  Niganthas  (followers  of  Mahavira,  i.e. 
Jainas).  Therefore  you  should  consider  it  becoming  that 
alms  should  still  be  given  to  them  when  they  come  to  you."  ^ 
Primitive  Buddhism  included  eighteen  various  schools  of 
thought,  sometimes  spoken  of  as  sects  or  denominations ; 
according  to  another  classification  the  number  is  twelve. 
Concerning  these  schools  which  would  arise  after  his  death, 
Gautama  is  said  to  have  made  the  following  pronounce- 
ment: "These  schools  will  be  the  repositories  of  the 
twelve  diversified  fruits  of  my  scriptures  without  priority 
or  inferiority — just  as  the  taste  of  sea-water  is  everywhere 
the  same — or  as  the  twelve  sons  of  one  man,  all  honest 
and  true,  so  will  be  the  exposition  of  my  doctrine  advo- 
cated by  these  schools."  ^  If  these  are  not  the  actual 
words  of  the  Buddha,  they  testify  at  least  to  what  the 
Buddhists  at  a  later  period  considered  that  he  might  very 
well  have  said ;  and  this  sympathetic  position  is  also  well 
illustrated  in  practice,  for  Hiouen  Tsang  in  the  sixth 
century  found  representatives  of  all  the  eighteen  sects  living 
side  by  side  in  a  single  monastery  without  dissension.  The 
traditional  tolerance  of  Indian  kings,  who  extend  their  sup- 
port to  all  sects  alike,  is  also  well  seen  in  the  case  of  Asoka, 
who  patronized  even  the  Ajivikas,  whose  doctrines  are  so 
often  denounced  by  Gautama  as  definitely  false.  Certain 
passages  in  the  Edicts  treat  of  tolerance  as  follows : 
"His  Sacred  and  Gracious  Majesty  the  King  does 
reverence  to  men  of  all  sects,  whether  ascetics  or  house- 
holders, by  gifts  and  various  forms  of  reverence. 
"His  Sacred  Majesty,  however,  cares  not  so  much  for 
gifts  or  external  reverence  as  that  there  should  be  a 
1  Mahavagga,  vi,  31.  ^  Beal,  Ind.  Ant.,  ix,  1880,  p.  300. 

156 


A.     SUMMIT  OF  ADAM'S   PEAK 
Shrine  of  the  Sacred  Foot-print,  with  two  Bhikkhus 


Plate  N 


B.     LANKATILAKA.  NR.  KANDY 


Tol 


erance 


growth  of  the  essence  of  the  matter  in  all  sects.     The 

growth   of   the   essence    of  the  matter  assumes  various 

forms,  but  the  root  of  it  is  restraint  of  speech,  to  wit,  a 

man  must  not  do  reverence  to  his  own  sect  or  disparage 

that  of  another  man  without  reason.     Depreciation  should 

be  for  specific  reasons  only,  because  the  sects  of  other 

people  all  deserve  reverence  for  one  reason  or  another  .  .  . 

he  who  does  reverence  to  his  own  sect  while  disparaging 

the  sects  of  others  wholly  from  attachment  to  his  own, 

with  intent  to  enhance  the  splendour  of  his  own  sect,  in 

reality  by  such  conduct  inflicts  the  severest  injury  on  his 

own   sect.i     Concord,   therefore,    is   meritorious,  to  wit, 

hearkening  and  hearkening  willingly  to  the  Law  of  Piety 

as  accepted  by  other  people.     For  this  is  the  desire  of 

His   Sacred    Majesty  that   all   sects   should   hear  much 

teaching  and  hold  sound  doctrine." 

^  He,  in  the  words  of  Schopenhauer,  who  "  labours  carefully  to  prove 
that  the  dogmas  of  the  foreign  belief  do  not  agree  with  those  of  his 
own,  to  explain  that  not  only  they  do  not  say  the  same,  but  certainly 
do  not  mean  the  same  as  his."  With  that  he  fancies  in  his  simplicity 
that  he  has  proved  the  falsity  of  the  doctrines  of  the  alien  belief. 
It  really  never  occurs  to  him  to  ask  the  question  which  of  the  two 
is  right.  I  was  once  acquainted  with  an  ardent  English  supporter 
of  foreign  missions  who  informed  me  that  a  Hindu  was  a  Buddhist 
who  worshipped  Muhammad.  Asoka's  view  of  tolerance  is  that  which 
has  always  prevailed  in  India.  Compare  "  Let  every  man,  so  far  as 
in  him  lieth,  help  the  reading  of  the  scriptures,  whether  those  of 
his  own  church  or  those  of  another  "  {Bhakta-kalpadrtuna  of  Pratapa 
Simha,  1866).  The  only  true  missionary  is  he  who  brings  to  the 
support  of  the  scriptures  of  others,  that  which  he  finds  in  his  own 
books.  The  more  one  knows  of  various  beliefs,  the  more  impossible  it 
becomes  to  distinguish  one  from  another ;  and  indeed  no  religion  could 
be  true  which  did  not  imply  the  same  which  every  other  religion  implies. 
"These  are  really  the  thoughts  of  all  men  in  all  ages  and  lands,  they  are 
not  original  with  me.  If  they  are  not  yours  as  much  as  mine,  they  are 
nothing,  or  next  to  nothing." — Walt  Whitman. 


Buddha  <^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

It  must  not,  however,  be  supposed  that  early  Buddhists 
extended  the  idea  of  tolerance  so  far  as  to  believe  that  it 
was  possible  to  attain  salvation  otherwise  than  through 
the  Doctrine  and  Discipline  expressly  taught  by  Gautama. 
Heresy,  on  the  contrary,  is  regarded  as  a  damnable  sin,  to 
be  expiated  in  the  purgatories.  The  Ajlvikas  are  regarded 
as  particularly  impious,  and  Gautama  being  asked  whether 
any  such  can  attain  to  heaven  after  death — to  say  nothing 
of  Nibbana — replies  :  "  In  the  ninety-one  aeons,  O  Vatsya, 
which  I  recall,  I  remember  but  one  single  Ajivika  who 
attained  to  heaven  and  he  acknowledged  the  truth  of 
kamma  and  the  efficacy  of  works."  ^ 

"Void  are  the  systems  of  other  teachers,"  says  Gautama, 
— "  void  of  true  saints,"  "  a  view  that  is  echoed  by  Brother 
Nagita  as  follows : 

Outside  our  Order  many  others  be,  who  teach 
A  path,  never,  like  this  one,  to  Nibbmia  leading? 
Nor  was  free  thinking  actually  tolerated  within  the  order. 
The  whole  object  of  the  Buddhist  Councils,  as  well  as  of 
the  final  writing  down  of  the  Pali  canon,  was  to  fix  the 
true  doctrine  and  eradicate  the  false.  Heretical  brethren 
were  excommunicated ;  the  best  evidence  of  this  appears 
in  certain  of  the  Edicts  of  Asoka,  who  lays  down  that  the 
Way  of  the  Church  must  not  be  departed  from,  and  that 
those  who  break  the  unity  of  the  Church  shall  be  unfrocked, 
and  must  dwell  apart  from  the   Brethren."*      It  is  quite 

^  Anguitara  Niknya,  ii,  p.  227. 

2  Mahdparnibbaiia  Sutta  {Dialogues  of  the  Buddha,  ii,  152).      Cf.  also, 
"  For  all  beings  salvation  is  only  to  be  found  in  Buddha,  Dhamma,  and 
Sangha." — Khuddakapatha. 
^  Psalms  of  the  Brethren,  No.  Ixxxvi  (Nagita). 

*  Mr.  R.  F.  Johnston  is  therefore  not  quite  correct  in  saying  that 
expulsion  from  monkhood  is  never  inflicted  for  free  thought  or  in- 
fidelity.— Buddhist  China,  p.  308. 

158 


Women 

clear  that  the  early  Buddhists  claimed  not  merely  to 
possess  the  truth,  but  to  possess  a  monopoly  of  truth. 
The  Mahayana  is  more  Catholic.  The  fundamental 
doctrine  of  Convenient  Means  {jipdya)  of  itself  implies 
the  necessary  variety  of  external  form  and  formula  which 
intuition  or  revelation  must  assume.  We  therefore  read 
characteristically  that — 

"  Perceiving  an  incarnation  of  the  Dharmakaya  in  every 
spiritual  leader  regardless  of  his  nationality  and  professed 
creed,  Mahayanists  recognize  a  Buddha  in  Socrates, 
Mohammad,  Jesus,  Francis  of  Assisi,  Confucius,  Laotze, 
and  many  others."  ^ 

The  Mahayana  is  indeed  in  principle  as  eclectic  as 
Hinduism,  and  could  easily  assimilate  to  itself  any  foreign 
religious  system  as  a  new  sect.  For  "  the  Conquerors 
are  masters  of  various  and  manifold  means  whereby  the 
Tathagata  reveals  the  supreme  light  to  the  world  of  gods 
and  men, — means  adapted  to  their  temperament  and 
prejudices."  -  All  past  and  all  future  Buddhas  teach  the 
same  saving"  knowledofe  in  the  manner  best  suited  to  the 
time  and  place  of  their  appearance. 

XI.   WOMEN 

"  Reverend  Sir,  have  you  seen  a  woman  pass  this  way  ?"     And  the  elder 

said : 

"  Was  it  a  woman,  or  a  man 

That  passed  this  way  ?     I  cannot  tell. 
But  this  I  know,  a  set  of  bones 
Is  travelling  upon  this  road." 

Vis  It  dd hi  Afagga,  ch.  i. 

A  good  number  of  the  Jatakas  or  Birth-stories  of  Gautama 
are  designed  to  point  the  moral  of   feminine   iniquity. 

^  Suzuki,  Outlines  of  Mahayana  Buddhism^  p.  63. 
^  Saddharinapundarika  Suira,  ii,  36  and  73. 


Buddha  &  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

"  Unfathomably  deep,  like  a  fish's  course  in  the  water," 
they  say,  "  is  the  character  of  women,  robbers  with  many 
artifices,  with  whom  truth  is  hard  to  find,  to  whom  a 
lie  is  like  the  truth  and  the  truth  is  like  a  lie.  .  .  . 
No  heed  should  be  paid  either  to  their  likes  or  to  their 
dislikes." 

The  doctrine  of  Gautama  is  monastic,  as  his  temperament 
is  unemotional.  In  the  words  of  Oldenberg,  "  Was  it 
possible  for  a  mind  like  Buddha,  who  in  the  severe  deter- 
mination of  renunciation  had  torn  himself  away  from  all 
that  is  attractive  and  lovely  in  this  world,  was  he  given 
the  faculty,  to  understand  and  to  value  woman's  nature  ?  " 
We  must  understand  that  the  Early  Buddhist  want  of 
sympathy  with  woman  is  not  an  unique  phenomenon,  but 
rather  one  that  is  typical  of  monastic  sentiment  all  the 
world  over.  It  is  based  on  fear.  For  of  all  the  snares 
of  the  senses  which  Ignorance  sets  before  the  unwary,  the 
most  insidious,  the  most  dangerous,  the  most  attractive, 
is  woman. 

"  Master,"  says  Ananda,  "  how  shall  we  behave  before 
women  ?  " — "  You  should  shun  their  gaze,  Ananda." — 
*'  But  if  we  see  them,  master,  what  then  are  we  to  do  ?  " 
— "  Not  speak  to  them,  Ananda." — "  But  if  we  do  speak 
to  them,  what  then?" — "Then  you  must  watch  over 
yourselves,  Ananda."  To  fall  in  love  is  a  form  of  Moha, 
infatuation  :  and  just  as  the  monastic  view  of  art  takes 
note  only  of  its  sensuous  elements,  so  the  monastic  view 
of  woman  and  the  love  of  woman  takes  into  account  none 
but  the  physical  factors.  To  compare  Nibbana — as  the 
Drihadd7'anyaka  Upanishad  compares  the  bliss  of  Atman- 
intuition  —  to  the  self-forgetting  happiness  of  earthly 
lovers,  locked  in  each  other's  arms,  would  be  for  Buddhist 
thought  a  bitter  mockery.  No  less  remote  from  Buddhist 
1 60 


Women 

sentiment  is  the  view  of  Western  chivalry  which  sees  in 
woman  a  guiding  star,  or  that  of  Vaishnava  or  Platonic 
idealism  which  finds  in  the  adoration  of  the  individual 
an  education  to  the  love  of  all. 

We  need  not  deny  that  the  position  of  Gautama  is  from 
a  certain  point  of  view  just.  It  is  scarcely  to  be  gainsaid 
that  woman  is  nearer  to  the  world  than  man ;  and  sexual 
differentiation  is  one  of  those  things  which  are  '  not  so, 
not  so '  in  Nirvana.  We  have  only  to  recognize  that 
Gautama  had  no  conception  of  a  moral  duty  to  provide 
for  the  continuance  of  the  race,  such  as  is  implied  in  the 
later  Brahmanical  doctrine  of  the  debt  to  the  ancestors. 
He  called  on  men  and  women  alike  to  root  up  the  infernal 
grove,  to  abandon  the  sexual  nature,  and  to  put  on  spiritual 
manhood ;  for  those  not  yet  prepared  for  this  change,  he 
felt  such  compassion  as  a  gentle  spirit  may  feel  for  those 
who  suffer  and  whose  suffering  is  the  result  of  their  own 
infatuation. 

Gautama's  favourite  and  spiritually  youngest  disciple 
Ananda  is  frequently  represented  as  advocating  the 
cause  of  woman.  When  the  question  of  the  admission 
of  women  to  the  Order — in  effect  a  claim  to  the  rights 
of  women  not  altogether  unlike  that  of  the  moderns — 
was  raised,  Ananda,  already  three  times  refused,  finally 
asks  : 

"  Are  women  competent.  Reverend  Sir,  if  they  retire  from 
the  household  life  to  the  houseless  one,  under  the  doctrine 
and  discipline  announced  by  the  Tathagata,  to  attain  to 
the  fruit  of  conversion,  to  attain  to  the  fruit  of  once- 
returning,  to  attain  to  the  fruit  of  never-returning,  to 
attain  to  Arahatta?" 

Gautama  cannot  deny  their  competence  ;  in  response  to 
Ananda's  further  pleas  he  admits  women  to  the  Order, 

L  i6i 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

subject  to  eighty  weighty  regulations,  beginning  with  one 
to  the  effect  that  even  the  eldest  ordained  Sister  must 
stand  before  and  behave  with  extreme  humility  toward  a 
Brother,  if  even  only  ordained  a  single  day.  But  he  adds : 
"  If,  Ananda,  women  had  not  retired  from  household  life 
to  the  houseless  one,  under  the  doctrine  and  discipline 
announced  by  the  Tathagata,  religion,  Ananda,  would 
long  endure ;  a  thousand  years  would  the  good  doctrine 
abide.  But  since,  Ananda,  women  have  now  retired  from 
the  household  life  to  the  houseless  one,  under  the  doctrine 
and  discipline  announced  by  the  Tathagata,  not  long, 
Ananda,  will  religion  endure ;  but  five  hundred  years, 
Ananda,  will  the  good  doctrine  abide." 
Elsewhere,  in  reply  to  another  question  propounded  by 
Ananda,  Gautama  replies : 

*'  Women  are  soon  angered,  Ananda ;  women  are  full  of 
passion,  Ananda ;  women  are  envious,  Ananda ;  women 
are  stupid,  Ananda.  That  is  the  reason,  Ananda,  that 
the  cause,  why  women  have  no  place  in  public  assemblies, 
do  not  carry  on  a  business,  and  do  not  earn  their  living 
by  any  profession." 

Highly  characteristic  is  the  story  of  thirty  charitable 
men,  led  by  the  Bodhisatta  when  existing  in  the  form  of 
the  young  Brahman,  Magha :  these  men,  upon  a  certain 
occasion  were  setting  up  a  rest-house  at  the  cross-roads 
by  way  of  charity.  "  But  as  they  no  longer  took  delight 
in  womankind,  they  allowed  no  woman  to  share  in  the 
good  work."  It  is  pleasing  to  reflect  that  a  lady  of  the 
name  of  Piety  succeeded  in  bribing  one  of  these  painfully 
good  men  to  agree  to  a  stratagem  by  which  she  was 
enabled  to  share  in  the  meritorious  work,  and  that  she 
thereby  earned  for  herself  a  palace  in  the  heaven  of  Sakka.* 
^  Kuldvaka  Jataka. 
162 


Women 

On  the  other  hand  we  find  that  Gautama  did  not  disdain 
to  accept  the  hospitality  and  the  gifts  of  devout  laywomen/ 
Such  a  one  is  represented  to  us  in  the  honourable  matron 
Visakha,  "  a  rich  citizen  commoner  at  Savatthi,  the  chief 
town  of  Kosala,  the  mother  of  many  blooming  children, 
the  grandmother  of  countless  grandchildren."  This  lady 
makes  provision  on  a  liberal  scale  for  the  Buddha  and  his 
disciples  while  they  reside  at  Savatthi.  One  day  she 
approaches  Gautama  and  makes  eight  requests,  and  these 
are,  that  she  may  be  allowed  to  furnish  the  brethren  with 
clothes  for  the  rainy  season,  food  to  the  brethren  who  reach 
Savatthi,  or  pass  through  Savatthi,  or  who  are  sick,  or 
who  reside  there,  medicine  for  the  sick,  and  bathing- 
dresses  to  the  sisters.  She  sets  forth  the  desirability  of 
such  alms  in  detail.  The  Buddha  replies  with  words  of 
approval,  and  is  pleased  to  grant  the  eight  favours.  It 
should  be  remarked,  that  in  accordance  with  the  Indian 
view  of  charity,  these  are  so  many  favours  bestowed  upon 
Visakha, — not,  as  Western  readers  might  think,  upon  the 
Order;  for  the  religious  mendicant,  by  accepting  gifts, 
confers  upon  the  giver  the  opportunity  of  a  meritorious 
deed.  Accordingly  the  Holy  One  praised  Visakha  as  one 
who  walks  the  shining,  commendable  path,  and  will  joy- 
fully reap  for  a  long  period  the  reward  of  her  charity,  in 
heaven  above. 

It  is  justly  remarked  by  Professor  Oldenberg  :  "  Pictures 
like  this  of  Visakha,  benefactresses  of  the  Church,  with 
their  inexhaustible  religious  zeal,  and  their  not  less  inex- 
haustible  resources  of  money,  are  certainly,  if  anything 

^  The  seven  most  illustrious  women  of  Early  Buddhism  are :  Khema, 
Uppalavanna,  Patacara,  Bhadda,  Kisa  Gotami,  Dhammadinna,  and 
Visakha.  For  the  full  story  of  Visakha  see  Warren,  Buddhism  in 
Translations,  p.  451  /;  for  Kisa  Gotami  see  pp.  23,  148,  270;  for 
Visakha  see  p.  52  ;  for  Khema  see  p.  223. 

16^ 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

ever  was,  drawn  from  the  life  of  India  in  those  days  :  they 
cannot  be  left  out  of  sight,  if  we  desire  to  get  an  idea 
of  the  actors  who  made  the  oldest  Buddhist  community 
what  it  was." 

Gautama,  however,  did  not  merely  accept  the  ofiferings  of 
the  respectable,  but  also  those  of  '  sinners.'  It  is  recorded 
that  upon  a  certain  occasion  he  accepted  for  himself  and 
his  followers  an  invitation  to  dinner  ^  from  the  courtesan 
Ambapali,  and  refused  the  alternative  invitation  of  the 
Licchavi  princes,  to  their  great  annoyance.^  He  also  for 
some  time  took  up  his  residence  in  her  mango  pleasaunce, 
of  which,  moreover,  she  made  a  gift  to  the  Order.  The 
Sutta  says    : 

"  The  Exalted  One  accepted  the  gift ;  and  after  instruct- 
ing, and  rousing,  and  inciting,  and  gladdening  her  with 
religious  discourse,  he  rose  from  his  seat  and  departed 
thence." 

It  is  worthy  of  note  that  neither  Visakha  nor  Ambapali 
is  represented  to  have  left  the  world  as  an  immediate  result 
of  his  teaching,  or  even  to  have  changed  her  mode  of  life  ; 
their  gifts  were  accepted  by  Gautama  simply  as  those  of 
pious  laywomen.  Each  would  receive  in  some  heaven  the 
immediate  reward  of  her  generosity,  and  in  some  future 
life  the  fruit  of  perfect  enlightenment. 
Buddhist  thought  gives  honour  to  woman  to  this  extent, 
that  it  never  doubts  the  possibility  of  her  putting  off  her 
woman's  nature,  and  even  in  this  life  becoming,  as  it  were, 
a  man.  The  case  is  given  of  the  lady  Gopika  who, 
"  having  abandoned  a  woman's  thoughts  and  cultivated 
the  thoughts  of  a  man  "  was  reborn  as  a  son  of  Sakka  in 
heaven.     There   was   also,    and   more   conspicuous,    the 

^  This  does  not  involve  sitting  down  to  eat  at  the  same  table  or  at  the 

same  time.  ^  See  above,  pp.  74,  75. 

164 


Women 

great  body  of  the  Sisters — initiated,  though  under  protest, 
with  the  consent  of  Gautama  himself — of  whom  many 
attained  to  Arahatta,  to  Nibbana ;  and  of  these  last,  the 
beautiful  songs  of  triumph  are  preserved  in  the  Psalms  of 
the  Sisters.  And  although  these  Sisters  were  technically 
appointed  juniors  in  perpetuity  to  the  Brethren,  "it  is 
equally  clear  that,  by  intellectual  and  moral  eminence, 
a  Therl  might  claim  equality  with  the  highest  of  the 
fraternity."  ^ 

The  woman  who  left  the  world  and  adopted  the  Sister's 
rule  not  only  escaped  from  the  restrictions  and  drudgery  of 
domesticity,  but — like  the  Hindu  widow  of  the  type  of 
Lilavati,  or  like  the  modern  woman  thinker  who  meets 
her  masculine  colleagues  on  equal  terms — obtained  from 
her  brethren  recognition  as  a  rational  being,  a  human 
being  rather  than  a  woman ;  she  shared  the  intellectual 
communion  of  the  religious  aristocracy  of  the  Ariyas. 
Her  point  of  view  in  this  regard  is  clearly  expressed  in 
the  Psalms : 

Am  I  a  woman  in  stick  matters^  or 

Am  I  a  man  ?  or  what  am  I  then  ? 
and 

How  should  the  woman^s  nature  hinder  Us  ? 

while  all  that  is  essentially  feminine  is  left  behind 

Speak  not  to  me  of  delighting  in  augkt  of  senstious 

pleasures  ! 
Verily  all  suck  vanities  now  no  more  may  dcligkt  me. 

This  position  is  very  closely  paralleled  by  that  which  is 
put  forward  by  Schopenhauer,  and  by  Weininger.  The 
latter  sums  up  his  argument  by  saying :  "  Man  can  only 

^  C.  A.  F.  Rhys  Davids,  Fsalms  of  the  Sisters^  p.  xxvi. 

165 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

respect  woman  when  she  herself  ceases  to  be  object  and 
material  for  man.  ...  A  woman  who  had  really  given  up 
her  sexual  self,  who  wished  to  be  at  peace,  would  be  no 
longer  '  woman.'  She  would  have  ceased  to  be  '  woman,' 
she  would  have  received  the  inward  and  spiritual  sign  as 
well  as  the  outward  form  of  regeneration."  He  asks,  "  Is 
it  (then)  possible  for  woman  really  to  wish  to  realize  the 
problem  of  existence,  the  conception  of  guilt  (dukkha)  ? 
Can  she  really  desire  freedom?  This  can  happen  only 
by  her  being  penetrated  by  an  ideal,  brought  to  the 
guiding  star.  ...  In  that  way  only  can  there  be  an  emanci- 
pation (Nibbana)  of  woman."  ^  To  these  questions  the 
Buddhist  experience  replies  that  it  is  possible  for  woman 
to  really  desire  freedom,  and  that  no  small  number  of 
women  amongst  the  Buddhist  Sisters  attained  it. 
It  may  be  left  to  the  advocates  of  woman's  '  emancipa- 
tion '  on  the  one  hand,  and  to  feminine  idealists  on  the 
other,  to  debate  how  far  these  views  involve  the  honour 
or  the  dishonour  of  '  woman.' 

AY/.  EARLY  BUDDHISM  AND  NATURE 

Here,  O  Bhikkus,  are  the  roots  of  trees,  here  are  empty  places  : 
meditate. — Majjhima  Nikaya,  i,  1 1 8. 

That  deep  understanding  of  Nature  which  characterizes 
the  later  developments  of  Buddhism  in  China  and  Japan 
we  must  not  regard  as  entirely  alien  to  the  early  Bud- 
dhists, still  less  as  essentially  Far  Eastern  rather  than 
Indian.  In  spite  of  themselves  the  early  Buddhist  her- 
mits were  lovers  of  Nature,  and  even  in  Hinayana  litera- 
ture the  poet  now  and  again  overcomes  the  monk.  That 
delight  in  flowers  and  forests  which  is  characteristic  of 

^  Weininger,  Sex  and  Character  (1906),  pp.  347-9. 
166 


Early  Buddhism  &^  Nature 

the  Brahmanical  epics,  especially  the  Ramayana,  and  of 
the  Indian  love-song  throughout,  was  also  felt  by  some 
of  the  Buddhist  Brethren  and  Sisters.  Almost  exactly 
that  sentiment  which  finds  expression  in  Whitman's 
exclamation 

/  ////«/&  /  co7i/d  turri  a7id  live  with  the  animals,  they  are  so 

placid  and  self -contain'' d, 
I  stand  and  look  at  thcfn  lo7ig  and  long. 
They  do  not  sweat  and  whine  about  their  condition.  .  .  . 
Not  one  is  dissatisfied^  not  one  is  demented  with  the  mania 

of  owning  things, 

is  to  be  recognized  in  the  customary  Indian,  and  therefore 
also  Buddhist,  comparison  of  the  ideal  man,  be  he  Rama 
or  Buddha,  to  a  lion  or  an  elephant,  or  sometimes  to  a 
mountain  that  may  not  be  shaken : 

Like  elephant  superb  is  he 
On  wooded  heights  in  Himalay  .  .  . 
The  Naga^s  trunk  is  confidence  ; 
His  white  tusks  eqtiafiimity.  .  .  . 
Detachme7it  is  the  tail  of  him.  .  .  . 
From  store  laid  up  he  doth  refrain.^ 

or,  again,  the  hermit 

Shine th  gloiious  in  a  patchwork  robe 
As  lion  in  the  sombre  mo^cntain  cave.^ 

or  is  likened  to  the  mountain's  self : 

Sui'e-based,  a  Brother  with  ilhisio7is  gone. 
Like  to  that  mou7itai7i  sta7ids  tmwavcritig} 

1  Psalms  of  the  Brethren  {Theragathd),  trans.  T.  W.  and  C.  A.  F. 
Rhys  Davids.     The  eight  quotations  next  following  are  from  the  same 

source. 

167 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Elsewhere  the  Buddha,  or  one  like  Buddha  is  compared 
to  the  flower  of  the  lotus : 

So  is  the  Btiddka  in  this  wo^dd, 

Bo7iz  in  the  world  and  dwelling  there^ 

Bitt  by  the  world  nowise  dejiled 

E'en  as  the  lily  by  the  lake. 

The  way  of  the  Buddhist  freeman,  the  Ariyas  who  have 
escaped  the  fetters  of  the  world,  is  likened  to  the  flight  of 
the  white  cranes  against  the  cloudy  sky. 
We  find  also  among  the  Psalms  of  the  Brethren  veritable 
nature  poems : 

Those  rocky  heights  with  hue  of  dark  blue  clouds, 

Whe7^e  lies  e^itbosomed  many  a  shining  tarn 

Of  crystal-clear,  cool  wate7's,  and  whose  slopes 

The  '  he7'ds  of  Indin  '  cover  and  bedeck  .  .  . 

Fair  uplands  rain-7'efxshed,  and  7''eso7iant 

With  crested  C7^eatu7xs  cries  antipho7ial, 

Lo7ie  heights  whe7'e  silent  Rishis  oft  7'eso7't  .  .  . 

F7xef7V77t  the  C7vwds  of  citizens  below. 

But  th7V7iged  with  flocks  of  77ia7iy  winged  thi7igs. 

The  ho77ie  of  he7'di7ig  C7'eatu7xs  of  the  wild  .  .  . 

Haunted  by  black-faced  apes  and  timid  dee7^, 

Whe7'e  ^neath  bj'ight  blosso77is  71171  the  silve7''  st7'eams : 

Such  a7'e  the  b7'aes  whe7'-ein  7ny  soul  delights. 

Another  of  the  poet  monks  is  credited  with  nine  gathas, 
of  which  one  runs : 

Whe7i  i7i  the  lowering  sky  thu7ide7's  the  stor7n-cloud'' s  d)'U7}i, 
A7td  all  the  pathways  of  the  bi7'ds  a7X  thick  with  7'ain, 
The  brother  sits  witlmi  the  hollow  of  the  hills 
Alo7te,  rapt  i7i  thought'' s  ecstasy.     No  higher  bliss 

Is  given  to  men  than  this. 
i68 


Early  Buddhism  &f  Nature 

While  yet  another  writes : 

Whene' er  I  see  the  crane,  her  clear  pale  wings 
Outstretched  in  fear  to  fiee  the  black  storm-cloud, 
A  shelter  seeking^  to  safe  shelter  borne. 
Then  doth  the  river  Ajakaranl 

Give  joy  to  me. 
Who  doth  not  love  to  see  on  either  bank 
Clustei^ed  rose-apple  trees  in  fair  array. 
Beyond  the  great  cave  of  the  ho  milage. 
Or  hear  the  soft  croak  of  the  frogs?  .  .  . 

No  less  characteristic  are  the  rain-songs : 

God  rains  as  Uwere  a  melody  most  sweet. 
Snug  is  my  little  hut,  sheltered,  well-roofed. 
The  heart  of  me  is  steadfast  and  at  peace. 
Now,  an  it  pleaseth  thee  to  rain,  god.  rain  ! 

But  these  are  the  utterances  of  individual  monks;  we 
cannot  frankly  credit  early  Buddhism — the  teaching  of 
Buddha — with  the  kinship  of  the  wild.  The  love  of 
lonely  places  is  most  often  for  their  very  loneliness,  and 
because  there  is  the  most  convenient  refuge  from  the 
bustle  and  temptations  of  the  world,  from  intercourse 
with  worldly  men  and  with  women.  The  lines  thus  quoted 
ending,  'Such  are  the  braes  wherein  my  soul  delights,' 
are  followed  immediately  by  the  edifying  justification 
soundinof  almost  like  an  excuse: 

For  that  which  brings  me  exquisite  delight 
Is  not  the  strains  of  st}ing  and  pipe  and  drufn. 
But  lohcn  zvith  intellect  well-poised,  inte?it, 
I  gain  the  perfect  vision  of  the  Norm. 

While  he  that  notes  how  "  all  the  pathways  of  the  birds 
are  thick  with  rain  "  claims  to  be  absorbed  in  the  ecstasy 

169 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

of  thought.  As  Mrs  Rhys  Davids  says,  the  ecstasy 
is  here  scarcely  the  product  of  religious  pleasure  alone. 
Is  not  then  the  'gentle  paganism'  which  allows  the  indi- 
vidual poet  anchorite  to  feel  this  positive  pleasure  in  the 
scenes  and  sights  of  the  forests,  regarded  from  the  stand- 
point of  the  Norm,  a  spiritual  weakness?  To  such  as 
yielded  thereto,  a  city  life  might  very  well  have  been 
appointed  by  way  of  penance. 

More  truly  in  accord  with  the  monastic  will  to  entire  aloof- 
ness is  the  coldness  of  the  monk  Citta  Gutta,  of  whom  the 
Visuddhi  Magga  relates  that  he  dwelt  for  sixty  years  in 
a  painted  cave,  before  which  grew  a  beautiful  rose-chest- 
nut :  yet  not  only  had  he  never  observed  the  paintings  on 
the  roof  of  the  cave,  but  he  only  knew  when  the  tree 
flowered  every  year,  through  seeing  the  fallen  pollen  and 
the  petals  on  the  ground.  In  the  M aha- Parinibb etna, 
Stttta,  too,  the  Buddha  holds  up  to  highest  admiration  the 
man  (himself)  who,  "being  conscious  and  awake,  neither 
sees,  nor  hears  the  sound  thereof  when  the  falling  rain  is 
beating  and  splashing,  and  the  lightnings  are  flashing 
forth,  and  the  thunderbolts  are  crashing." 
It  is  true  that  Early  Buddhist  literature  abounds  with 
many  comparisons  of  the  ideal  man  to  an  elephant  or  a 
rhinoceros.  The  heart  of  the  comparison,  to  the  Buddhist, 
lay  in  the  particularization  of  the  elephant  as  a  solitary 
elephant,  and  the  fact  that  the  rhinoceros  is  by  nature 
solitary.  In  this  way  the  Buddhists  called  on  higher  men 
to  leave  the  market-place,  knowing  that 

"  Great  things  are  done  when  men  and  mountains  meet 
They  a7'e  not  done  by  jostling  in  the  street. ^^ 

But  we  cannot  credit  the  Buddhist  authors  who  use  these 
metaphors  with  any  special  understanding  of  Nature, 
170 


Early  Buddhism  &^  Nature 

any  more  than  we  should  the  early  Christian  writers  who 
speak  of  the  lamb  and  the  dove.     The  comparison  very 
soon,  indeed,  becomes  ridiculous.     "Cultivating  kindness, 
equanimity,  compassion,  deliverance  and  sympathy,  unob- 
structed by  the  whole  world,  let  him  wander  alone  like  a 
rhinoceros,"  is  the   constant  theme  of  the  Khaggavisdna 
Sutta.     But  this  is  a  false  and  sentimental  view,  or  at  least 
nothing  better  than  the  twisting  of  natural  fact  to  edifying 
ends,  for  the  rhinoceros  is  a  surly  beast,  and  the  solitary 
elephant  a  '  rogue.'     Still  more  is  it  false,  and  not  "  regard- 
ing things  as  they  really  are"  to  pretend  for  the  animals — 
who  are  not  in  fact  at  all  emancipate  from  passion,  and 
who  do  not  think  about  their  sins,  or  practise  Asiibhci 
meditations — the  temperament  of  an  ascetic  human.     The 
pagan  innocence  of  animals  and  children  is  in  truth  very 
far  indeed  from  the  Ideal  of  Early  Buddhist  monasticism. 
What  these  metaphors  show  us  is  a  phase  of  the  common 
Oriental  tendency  to  find  in  natural  objects  the  symbols  of 
general  ideas.     But  they  do  not  yet  imply  any  such  sense 
of  the  unity  of  life  as  finds  expression  in  Matsunaga's 
poem  on  the  morning  glory,^  or  Whitman's  passionate 
confession  of  belief  "  in  those  winged  purposes."     Even 
the  epithets  migabJmtena  cctasd^  '  having  a  heart  like  the 
wild  deer,'  and  ainnha-sahnifw,  'having  the  forest  sense 
of  things ' — for  all  their  beauty — may  not  always  mean 
all  that  they  seem  to  say.     At  least  we  cannot  but  doubt 
if   those   who   used   these   terms   realized   all  that  they 
implied.     In  Zen  Buddhism,  on  the  contrary,  phrases  of 
this  sort  have  a  real  and  deep  meaning,  for  in  animals  and 
children  the  inner  and  outer  life  are  at  one,  the  duality  of 
flesh  and  spirit  which  afflicts  us  with  the  sense  of  sin  is 
not  yet  felt;  the  Zen  Buddhist  does  in  truth  aspire  to 

^  See  below,  p.  256. 

171 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

recover  that  unity  of  consciousness  which  is  asked  for  in 
the  beautiful  prayer  of  Socrates — to  make  at  one  the  inner 
and  outer  man — and  he  knows  that  to  recover  the  kingdom 
of  heaven,  the  state  of  Buddhahood,  he  must  become 
again  as  a  little  child,  he  must  possess  the  heart  of  the 
wild  deer;  notwithstanding  he  must  also  overcome  the 
ignorance  of  which  they  are  not  yet  aware.  But  it  was 
not  in  this  sense  that  the  early  Buddhist  ascetics  yearned 
for  the  '  forest  sense  of  things ; '  or  if  for  some  it  was 
so,  then  these  individual  singers  are  no  longer  typical 
exponents  of  primitive  Buddhism,  but  forerunners  of  the 
Mahayana  and  Zen,  taught  by  their  forest  masters  to 
understand  the  unity  of  life,  hearing  already  the  Sermon 
of  the  Woods,  already  breaking  through  the  spiritual 
isolation  of  the  Arahat  and  Pacceka  Buddha. 
That  the  early  Buddhist  culture  is  still  far  from  a  true 
intimacy  with  the  Suchness  of  the  world  appears  in  its  lack 
of  sympathy  with  human  nature.  It  is  impossible  to  claim 
for  a  monastic  rule  which  includes  as  an  essential  practice 
the  Meditation  on  the  Foulness  of  Things,  a  real  sympathy 
with  Nature :  it  is  inconsistent  to  delight  in  the  ways  of 
the  wild  creatures  of  the  woods,  and  to  turn  with  loathing 
from  the  nobility  and  innocence  of  men.  It  is  a  strange 
view  of  Nature  that  regards  the  human  body  as  "impure, 
malodorous,  full  of  foul  matter,"  an  "offensive  shape," 
and  a  "  carrion  thing,"  and  strives  to  promote  a  disgust 
for  the  healthy  flesh  by  a  contemplation  of  decaying 
corpses.  "This  body  vile,"  says  Sister  Vijaya,  "doth 
touch  me  only  with  distress  and  shame."  ^ 

^  The  morbid  aspects  of  this  hot-house  cultivation  of  indifference  and 
purity  are  indicated  in  Psalms  of  the  Brethren,  vv.  316,  1055,  and 
almost   equally   so  in  vv.  567  ff.     See  also    Visuddhi  Magga,  ch.  vi, 
Warren,  Buddhism  in  Translations,  p.  298. 
172 


Early  Buddhism  &^  Nature 

No  one  will  wish  to  deny  that  the  truths  of  early  Buddhism 
are  true,  or  that  the  stress  that  was  laid  on  Anicca  (tran- 
science)  and  Anatta  (no  eternal  soul),  and  the  thought  of 
salvation  here  and   now,  constituted  a   permanent   con- 
tribution to  our  realization  of  '  things  as  they  really  are  ; ' 
and  we  can  hardly  be  too  grateful  for  the  condemnation 
of    sentimentality   as    a    cardinal    sin.     But    the    early 
Buddhists,  like  so  many  other  enthusiasts,  used  their  share 
of  truth  for  the  denial  of  others :  they  were  so  convinced 
of  the  sorrows  of  the  world  that  they  could  not  sympathize 
with  its  joys.     In  saying  this,  I  do  not  forget  the  Sublime 
Mood  of  Mudita;  but  I  remember  that  early  Buddhist 
literature  as  a  whole  is  filled  with  a  contempt  of  the  world 
which  inevitably  precludes  a  sympathy  with  its  hopes  and 
fears.     Early  Buddhism  does  not  associate  itself  with  the 
hopes  and  fears  of  this  life  :  it  seeks  only  to  point  out  the 
haven  of  refuge  from  both  hope  and  fear,  and  its  sympathy 
is  with  the  struggles  of  those  who  are  caught  in  the  toils  of 
either.     The  early  Buddhist  could  not  possibly  grasp  the 
thought  that  'The  soul  of  sweet  delight  can  never  be  defiled.' 
We  must  not,  on  the  other  hand,  allow  ourselves  to  carry- 
too  far  this  criticism  of  early  Buddhist  deficiencies.     Let 
us  once  more  remember  that  this  is  not  a  religion  for 
laymen,  but  a  rule  for  monks,  and  as  such,  though  severe, 
it  is  reasonable  and  sane,  and  well  designed  to  cultivate 
the    noble   type   of   character   desired.      We    must    also 
remember   that    Gautama   did    not   stand    alone    in    his 
Puritanism  ;    this  was    the    intellectual  bias  of  his  age, 
and    is    reflected    as    much    in    Brahmanical    and    Jaina 
as  in  Buddhist    texts,  and  it  survives  as  a  tendency  in 
Indian  thought  to  the  present  day,  though  only  as  one 
among  others  more    powerful.      The  general  (not   only 
Buddhist)  a:sthetic  of  Gautama's  age,  moreover,  was  wholly 

173 


Buddha  <Sf  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

hedonistic ;  it  was  not  imagined  that  music  or  plastic  art 
considered  as  secular  could  have  any  other  than  a  sensuous 
appeal,  or  considered  as  religious  could  subserve  a  more 
spiritual  aim  than  that  of  pleasing  the  gods  or  fulfilling 
the  purposes  of  the  magician.  It  was  also  an  age  of 
highly  developed  material  civilization  and,  at  least 
for  those  classes  where  the  intellectual  movements  of 
Atmanism  and  Buddhism  originated,  of  great,  if  simple, 
luxury.  It  was,  then,  the  first  natural  reaction  of  the 
thinking  mind  to  escape  from  the  bondage  of  the  senses 
by  asceticism,  cutting  off  as  it  were  the  hand,  and  pluck- 
ing out  the  eye.  Amongst  many  who  felt  this  impulse, 
Gautama  was  distinguished  by  moderation. 
This  Indian  age  of  asceticism,  moreover,  we  ought  to 
regard  as  the  useful  drakmdcdrya,  the  severe  and  spartan 
early  education  of  the  future  householder,  accomplished 
according  to  the  discipline  of  the  final  truths  Anatta  and 
neti,  neti.  As  one  of  the  most  severe  critics  of  early 
Buddhism  has  remarked :  "  Asceticism  and  Puritanism  are 
almost  indispensable  means  of  educating  and  ennobling  a 
race  which  seeks  to  rise  above  its  hereditary  baseness 
and  work  itself  upward  to  future  supremacy."  ^  In  later 
centuries  the  race^  that  had  thus  by  self-knowledge  and 
self-control  attained  to  spiritual  manhood,  could  permit 
to  itself  a  relaxation  of  the  monastic  discipline,  propor- 
tionate to  its  growing  power  to  achieve  the  union  of 
renunciation  with  sweet  delight,  and  to  find  in  work,  no- 
work.  The  future  civilization  of  India,  above  all  its 
wonderful  social  ideal,  was  based  on  the  intellectual  tapas 
of  the  Forest-dwellers  and  the  Wanderers  of  the  age  of 

^  Nietzsche,  Beyojid  Good  and  Evil,  p.  8i. 

2  By  '  race '  I  mean  no  more  than  the  succession  of  individuals  sharing 

the  Indo-Aryan  culture. 


Early  Buddhism  &f  Nature 

the  Upanishads  and  of  Gautama,  and  it  would  ill-become 
us  to  depreciate  that  without  which  the  future  could  not 
have  been. 

The  early  Buddhist  ideal  considered  as  such  needs  no 
justification;  it  is  only  as  against  those  who  seek  to 
establish  it  as  the  one  and  only  mode  of  saving  truth, 
and  in  particular  those  who  speak  of  the  Mahayana  and  of 
Hinduism  as  a  falling  away  into  superstition  and  ignorance, 
that  we  have  to  point  out  very  unmistakably,  that  the 
Theravada  ideal,  if  not  positively  narrow,  is  at  least 
definitely  limited.  No  one  pretends  that  with  change  there 
did  not  come  both  loss  and  gain ;  but  no  religion  has  ever 
yet  persisted  for  even  a  single  century  unchanged,  the 
possibility  of  such  a  thing  is  even  contrary  to  Anicca,  and 
the  Buddhist  Dhamma  could  no  more  defend  itself  from 
growth  than  any  other  living  seed.  Those  who  would 
cast  away  the  stem  and  the  branches,  whether  to  '  return 
to  the  vedas'  of  Brahmanism,  or  to  return  to  the  Theravada 
Dhamma  of  Gautama  may  be  compared  to  a  man  who  is 
old  in  years  and  experience,  and  in  honourable  achievement, 
and  yet,  remembering  the  greatness  of  the  sainted  teachers 
of  his  youth,  would  fain  never  have  departed  from  their 
feet  to  deal  with  good  and  evil  in  the  world  of  living  men. 
Let  us  on  the  contrary  recognize  that  there  exists  no  breach 
of  continuity  between  the  old  and  the  new  laws,  and  that 
the  Mahayana  and  the  later  expansion  of  Hinduism  are 
the  very  fruit  of  the  earlier  discipline.  From  this  point  of 
view  it  becomes  of  the  utmost  interest  to  seek  out  and 
recognize  in  early  Buddhist  thought  the  unmistakable 
germs  which  are  afterward  fully  developed  in  the 
Mahayana,  especially  the  Mahayana  of  the  Zen  type,  and 
which  in  alliance  with  Taoist  philosophy  effected  a  recon- 
ciliation of  religion  with  the  world.     Amongst  the  sources 

175 


Buddha  &*  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

of  this  wider  culture,  not  the  least  important  are  those 
traces  of  the  love  of  nature,  and  that  tendency  to  lyrical 
and  ballad-form  expression  which  we  observe  so  well 
marked  in  the  Psalms  of  the  Brethren  and  Sisters,  and  in 
the  Jatakas. 

X//L  BUDDHIST  PESSIMISM 
It  has  often  been  said,  and  not  altogether  without  reason, 
that   (early)   Buddhism   is  a  pessimistic  faith.     It  is  to 
Buddha  and  such  as  Buddha  that  Nietzsche  refers  when 
he  exclaims : 

"They  meet  an  invalid,  or  an  old  man,  or  a  corpse — and 

immediately  they  say  'Life  is  refuted.'" 

Can  we  agree  that  Buddhism  is  pessimistic  ?     The  answer 

is  both  Yes  and  No.     Human  life  is  of  supreme  value  to 

the  Buddhist  as  the  only  condition  from  which  the  highest 

good  can  be  reached ;  hence  suicide  (the  real  proof  of  the 

conviction  that  life  is  not  worth  living)  is  explicitly  and 

constantly  condemned  by  Buddhist  scripture  as  waste  of 

opportunity.     But  we  have  to  recognize  that  the  quality 

of  life  is  very  varied,  and  Buddhism  is  far  from  optimistic 

about  any  and  every  sort  of  life,  the  mere  fact  of  existence. 

Gautama  ridicules    the    mere   will   to   life   as   much   as 

Nietzsche   himself  despises  sensual  men;  even  the  desire 

for  rebirth  in  the  highest  heavens  is  spoken  of  by  Buddhists 

as  'low.'     The  common  life  of  the  world,  according  to 

Gautama,  is  not  worth  living — it  is  no  life  for  an  Ariya, 

a  gentleman.     But  on  the  other  hand  he  puts  forward  a 

mode  of  life  for  higher  men  which  he  regards  as  well 

worth  living,  and  claims  that  by  this  life  the  highest  good 

is  attainable,  and  in  this  conviction  that  '  Paradise  is  still 

upon  earth '  he  is  anything  but  pessimistic.     It  is  true 

that  he  refuses  to  regard  life  as  an  end  in  itself ;  but  so 

176 


Buddhist  Pessimism 

do  Nietzsche  and  Whitman.     We  do  not  call  the  latter 
pessimistic  when  he  praises  death  more  than  life. 

Through  ine  shall  the  wo7'ds  be  said  to  7nake  death  ex- 

hilai'ating  .  .  . 
JVor  will  I  allozv  yon  any  more  to  balk  me  with  what  I  was 

calling  life, 
For  flow  it  is  conveyed  to  me  that  you  are  the  purports 

essential^ 
That  you  hide  i7i  these  shifting  fo^'^ns  of  life.  .  .  . 
That  you  will  one  day  perhaps  take  control  of  all. 

In  precisely  the  same  way  using  '  Death '  for  Nibbana,  the 
artist  disparages  '  life ' : 

"  For,  looking  too  long  upon  life,  may  one  not  find  all  this 
to  be  not  the  beautiful,  nor  the  mysterious,  nor  the  tragic, 
but  the  dull,  the  melodramatic,  and  the  silly :  the  conspiracy 
against  vitality — against  both  red  and  white  heat?  And 
from  such  things  which  lack  the  sun  of  life  it  is  not 
possible  to  draw  inspiration.  But  from  that  mysterious, 
joyous,  and  superbly  complete  life  which  is  called  Death 
.  .  .  which  seems  a  kind  of  spring,  a  blossoming  from 
this  land  and  from  this  idea  can  come  so  vast  an  inspiration, 
that  with  unhesitating  exultation  I  leap  forward  to  it;  and 
behold,  in  an  instant,  I  find  my  arms  full  of  flowers."  ^ 
The  first  of  the  Four  Ariyan  Truths  then — which  affirms 
the  existence  of  suffering,  Dukkha,  as  the  symptom  and 
constitutional  sickness  of  individuality,  cannot  be  called 
pessimistic,  because  it  merely  states  the  obvious :  we 
know  that  a  conditioned  life  of  eternal  happiness  is  a 
contradiction  in  terms. 

Moreover,  the  early  Buddhists  were  very  far  from  miser- 
able ;  they  rejoiced  as  those  who  were  healthy  amongst  the 

^  Gordon  Craig,  The  Art  of  the  Theatre. 

M  177 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

ailing,  and  had  found  a  remedy  for  every  possible  recur- 
rence of  illness. 

We  read,  for  example,  in  the  Dhanmmpada  : 
"  In  perfect  joy  we  live,  without  enemy  in  this  world  of 
enmity  .  .  .  among  sick  men  we  dwell  without  sickness 
.  .  .  among  toiling  men  we  dwell  without  toil.  .  .  .  The 
monk  who  dwells  in  an  empty  abode,  whose  soul  is  full 
of  peace,  enjoys  superhuman  felicity,  gazing  solely  on  the 
truth." 

It  is  to  be  observed,  however,  and  must  be  admitted,  that 
the  Buddhist  view  of  ordinary  life  is  lacking  in  courage. 
The  very  emphasis  laid  on  Dukkha  is  false  :  for  it  is  not 
Dukkha  only,  but  an  exactly  equal  measure  of  Dukkha 
and  Sukha  alike.  Pain  and  Pleasure,  which  is  the  mark  of 
this  life.  There  are  indeed  many  reasons  why  we  cannot 
place  the  zenith  of  our  being  in  this  world  of  Pain  and 
Pleasure  ;  but  the  predominance  of  Pain  over  Pleasure 
cannot  be  one  of  these. 

Another  mark  of  genuine  pessimism — by  which  I  mean 
only  '  looking  on  the  dark  side  of  things ' — is  the  charac- 
teristic Early  Buddhist  distrust  of  pleasure.  We  cannot 
nobly  find  a  ruling  principle  of  life  either  in  seeking  to 
avoid  pain,  or  in  courting  pleasure;  but  much  rather  in 
the  thought :  "  I  strive  not  after  my  happiness,  I  strive 
after  my  work." 

The  highest  state  must  be  without  desire,  because  desire 
implies  a  lack,  and  in  this  sense  the  superman,  the 
Arahat,  is  by  definition  passionless.  Now  this  is  a  state 
which  we  may  best  conceive  in  the  manner  of  Chuang  Tzu : 
"  By  a  man  without  passions  I  mean  one  who  does  not 
permit  good  and  evil  to  disturb  his  internal  economy, 
but  rather  falls  in  with  whatever  happens,  as  a  matter  of 
course,  and  does  not  add  to  the  sum  of  his  mortality." 
178 


Buddhist  Pessimism 

But  the  Buddhist  is  very  much  disturbed  by  good  and 
evil — he  fears  pleasure,  and  he  would  avoid  pain,  and  the 
whole  of  the  Dhamma  is  designed  to  achieve  the  latter 
end.  It  is  true  that  saving  knowledge  must  at  last 
release  the  individual  from  the  possibility  of  pain  :  "  But 
Buddhism  was  the  first  to  transform  that  which  was 
a  mere  consequence  into  a  motive,  and  by  conceivijig 
emancipation  as  an  escape  from  the  sufferings  of  existence, 
to  make  selfishness  the  mainspring  of  existence."  ^  This 
is  probably  the  most  severe  criticism  that  has  anywhere 
been  passed  on  Early  Buddhism,  and  though  I  think  it  is 
unfairly  comprehensive,  it  contains  some  elements  of  truth. 
It  is,  of  course,  otherwise  with  the  Bodhisatta  ideal, 
where  the  individual  for  an  end  beyond  himself  takes 
upon  his  own  shoulders  the  burden  of  the  world's 
ignorance,  and  freely  spends  himself  in  countless  lives 
of  supernatural  generosity.  The  Bodhisatta  ideal  is 
practically  identical  with  that  of  the  Nietzschean  Super- 
man, with  his  '  Bestowing  Virtue.' 

But  while  in  certain  aspects  Early  Buddhism  has  a 
pessimistic  character,  we  must  protest  against  either  of 
the  assumptions:  (i)  that  the  view  that  ordinary  life,  a 
mere  existence,  is  relatively  worthless,  is  properly  to  be 
described  as  pessimistic,  or  (2)  that  Indian  religious 
pessimism,  real  or  fancied,  has  any  connexion  whatever 
with  the  supposed  unhappy  circumstances  of  Indian  life 
or  the  enervating  consequences  of  the  Indian  climate. 
As  regards  the  first  assumption,  it  may  suffice  to  indicate 
that  the  'optimistic'  Nietzsche  pours  more  scorn  on 
'  mere  existence  '  than  is  to  be  found  anywhere  in 
Buddhism.  And  as  regards  the  second,  it  may  be 
pointed  out — to  select  but  one  of  many  arguments — that 
^  Deussen,  The  Philosophy  of  the  Upanishads,  p.  341. 

179 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

the  so-called  pessimistic  beliefs  have  always  proceeded 
from  the  higher  classes,  who  enjoyed  the  good  things  of 
this  life  to  the  full:  if  there  is  a  contrast  between  the 
childish  '  optimism '  of  the  early  Vedic  hymns,  with 
their  prayers  for  many  cattle  and  long  life,  and  the 
'pessimism'  of  the  Vedanta  or  of  Buddhism,  this  is  a 
result  not  of  a  decline  in  material  civilization,  but  of  the 
accumulation  of  experience.  For  the  Indian  view  is  the 
correct  one,  that  it  is  not  deprivation  of  the  good  things 
of  this  world  that  leads  the  wise  at  last  to  turn  to  higher 
thoughts,  but  rather  long  experience  of  their  ultimate 
monotony.  Desires  suppressed  breed  pestilence  :  but  the 
road  of  excess  leads  to  the  palace  of  wisdom.  Eman- 
cipation seeks  to  avoid  a  future  heaven  no  less  than  a 
future  hell — had  it  been  prompted  by  a  mere  reaction 
for  the  misery  of  physical  existence,  this  must  have 
created  a  religion  similar  to  certain  aspects  of  Christianity 
where  compensation  for  the  sorrows  of  this  life  is  expected 
in  a  heaven  of  endless  delight. 

XIV.  A  BUDDHIST  EMPEROR 
A  characteristic  story  is  related  in  the  later  legendary 
history  of  Gautama.  It  is  said  that  when  he  was  seated 
beneath  the  Bodhi  tree,  and  near  to  attain  Nibbana,  the 
Evil  One,  failing  to  shake  his  purpose  in  other  ways, 
appeared  in  the  guise  of  a  messenger  with  letters  bearing 
the  false  report  that  Devadatta — Gautama's  cousin  and 
constant  enemy — had  usurped  the  throne  of  Kapilavastu, 
and  had  taken  the  wives  and  the  goods  of  Gautama  to 
himself  and  imprisoned  his  father ;  the  letters  urged  him 
to  return  to  restore  peace  and  order.  But  Gautama 
reflected  that  Devadatta's  action  resulted  from  his  malice 
and  lust,  while  the  Sakyas,  in  not  defending  their  king 
1 80 


A  Buddhist  Emperor 

had  shown  a  cowardly  and  despicable  disposition.  Con- 
templating these  follies  and  weaknesses  of  the  natural 
man,  his  own  resolution  to  attain  to  something  higher 
and  better  was  confirmed  in  him.^ 

This  legend  aptly  expresses  the  indifference  of  Buddhism 
to  the  order  of  the  world.  It  is  in  full  accord  with  this 
point  of  view  that  Buddhism  has  never  formulated  the 
ideal  of  a  social  order  of  this  or  that  type ;  its  ethic  is 
purely  individualistic,  and  places  no  reliance  whatever  on 
external  regulation.  Mere  good  government  cannot  lead 
to  the  Dying  Out  (Nibbana)  of  Craving,  Resentment,  and 
Infatuation :  and  since  the  Gospel  of  Gautama  has  solely 
to  do  with  the  way  to  that  Dying  Out,  it  is  not  concerned 
with  government  at  all.  This  position  is  practically 
identical  with  that  of  Jesus,  who  repudiated  any  alliance  of 
the  Kingdom  of  God  with  temporal  power.  In  agreement 
with  this  view,  both  the  father  and  mother  of  Gautama, 
and  his  wife  and  son,  and  a  host  of  Sakya  princes  resigned 
their  worldly  status  and  became  homeless  followers  of 
Him-who-has-thus-attained. 

If,  however,  every  ruler  who  accepted  the  Buddhist  Gospel 
had  immediately  adopted  the  homeless  life,  it  would  be  im- 
possible to  speak  of  Buddhist  emperors  or  kings.  We  find, 
on  the  contrary,  that  ruling  princes,  Buddhist  by  education 
or  conversion,  constantly  retained  their  temporal  power,  and 
used  this  power  for  the  propagation  of  the  Dhamma,  for  the 
support  of  the  Brethren,  and  for  the  maintenance  of  social 
order  conformable  to  Buddliist  ethic.  Histoiy  preserves  for 
us  the  names  of  many  such  Buddhist  kings,  who,  notwith- 
standing that  Buddhism  is  a  Gospel  of  self-mastery  alone, 
sought  to  improve  the  order  of  the  world  by  ruling 
others.  It  is  in  this  way  that  the  doctrine  which  was 
^  Beal,  Romantic  History  of  Buddha^  p.  207  :  sitpra^  p.  32. 

181 


Buddha  &P  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

originally,  not  perhaps  altogether  anti-social,  but  at  least 
non-social,  has  come  to  have  an  influence  upon  the  social 
order. 

We  shall  gain  a  good  idea  of  the  social  influence  of 
Buddhism  by  devoting  attention  to  Asoka  Maurya,  the 
most  famous  of  the  Buddhist  rulers  of  India.  Asoka 
succeeded  to  the  throne  of  Magadha  about  270  B.C.  and 
received  a  more  formal  coronation  four  years  later.  The 
first  great  event  in  his  reign  took  place  eight  years  later; 
this  was  the  conquest  of  Kalinga,  a  considerable  territory 
bordering  the  east  coast,  south  of  the  modern  Orissa; 
with  this  addition,  his  territory  embraced  the  whole  of 
India  except  the  extreme  south.  This  conquest  involved 
the  slaughter  of  100,000  persons,  while  half  as  many 
again  were  carried  into  captivity,  and  many  more 
perished  from  famine  and  pestilence.  Perhaps  the 
spectacle  of  so  much  suffering  predisposed  the  Emperor 
to  consider  with  special  attention  that  system  of  which 
the  sole  aim  was  to  point  out  the  way  of  salvation  from 
Suffering,  Dukkha.^  At  any  rate  Asoka  himself  records 
his  adhesion  to  the  Buddhist  Dhamma  in  the  following 
terms : 

"  Directly  after  the  annexation  of  the  Kalingas,  began  his 
Sacred  Majesty's  zealous  protection  of  the  Dhamma,  his 
love  of  that  Dhamma,  and  his  giving  instruction  therein. 
Thus  arose  His  Sacred  Majesty's  remorse  for  having  con- 
quered the  Kalingas,  because  the  conquest  of  a  country 

^  "Victory,"  says  the  Dhammapada,  v.  201,  "breeds  hatred,  for 
the  conquered  is  unhappy."  It  is  worth  notice  that  it  has  been 
suggested  that  the  study  of  Buddhism  is  likely  to  receive  a  great 
impetus  in  the  immediate  future,  because  of  "its  power  to  restrain 
its  adherents  from  those  sanguinary  outbreaks  of  international  butchery 
which  occur  about  once  in  every  generation  in  the  West." — Cambridge 
Magazine,  April  24,  191 5. 
182 


A  Buddhist  Emperor 

previously  unconquered  involves  the  slaughter,  death,  and 
carrying  away  captive  of  the  people.  That  is  a  matter 
of  profound  sorrow  and  regret  to  His  Sacred  Majesty," 
and  thus  connecting  his  conversion  with  the  change  of 
attitude  toward  others,  he  continues  : 
"  Thus  of  all  the  people  who  were  then  slain,  done  to 
death,  or  carried  away  captive  in  the  Kalingas,  if  the 
hundredth  or  the  thousandth  part  were  to  suffer  the  same 
fate,  it  would  now  be  matter  of  regret  to  His  Sacred 
Majesty.  Moreover,  should  any  one  do  him  wrong  that 
too  must  be  borne  with  by  His  Sacred  Majesty,  if  it  can 
possibly  be  borne  with.  .  .  .  His  Sacred  Majesty  desires 
that  all  animate  beings  should  have  security,  self-control, 
peace  of  mind,  and  joyousness.  .  .  .  And  for  this  purpose 
has  this  pious  edict  been  written  in  order  that  my  sons 
and  grandsons,  who  may  be,  should  not  regard  it  as  their 
duty  to  conquer  a  new  conquest.  If,  perchance,  they 
become  engaged  in  a  conquest  by  arms,  they  should  take 
pleasure  in  patience  and  gentleness,  and  regard  as  (the 
only  true)  conquest  the  conquest  won  by  piety.  That 
avails  for  both  this  world  and  the  next.  Let  all  joy  be  in 
effort,  because  that  avails  for  both  this  world  and  the  next." 
In  many  other  edicts,  which  were  engraved  on  stone  and 
are  still  extant,  Asoka  proclaims  his  Dhamma  in  great 
detail.  This  Dhamma  is  distinctively  Buddhist,  but  it 
differs  from  the  teaching  of  Gautama  in  omitting  all 
references  to  the  analytic  aspect  and  dwelling  exclusively 
on  ethics:  Nibbana  is  not  even  mentioned,  and  the 
reward  of  well-doing  is  to  be  the  Imperial  favour  in  this 
world  and  well-being  in  the  next,  '  the  beyond  ' — not  the 
avoidance  of  rebirth.  The  mention  of  former  Buddhas 
together  with  other  details,  shows  already  some  develop- 
ment of  Mahayanist  doctrines.     It  is  thus  possible  that 

183 


Buddha  &  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Asoka  made  the  determination  to  attain  Buddhahood  in 
some  future  life,  but  more  likely  he  looked  forward  only  to 
a  future  attainment  of  Arahatta. 

The  edicts  are  essentially  concerned  with  ethical  be- 
haviour; they  imply  a  considerable  amount  of  inter- 
ference with  personal  liberty,  such  as  we  should  now  call 
'making  people  good  by  Act  of  Parliament.'  Asoka 
desires  to  be  a  father  to  his  subjects,  and  speaks  with 
parental  authority.  He  lays  the  greatest  stress  on  re- 
ligious tolerance  and  on  the  duty  of  reverence  to  those 
whose  age  or  station  deserves  it ;  and  strongly  inculcates 
the  sanctity  of  animal  life.  On  the  other  hand  there  is 
no  attempt  to  abolish  capital  punishment.  Reverence, 
compassion,  truthfulness  and  sympathy  are  the  cardinal 
virtues. 

The  most  remarkable,  far-reaching  and  permanent  effects 
of  Asoka's  activities  are  those  which  resulted  from  his 
Foreign  Missions.  This  phrase  is  to  be  understood  in 
the  modern  evangelical,  and  not  in  a  political,  sense :  for 
we  find  that  not  content  with  preaching  the  Dhamma  to 
his  own  subjects,  Asoka  dispatched  imperial  missionaries 
to  all  other  parts  of  India,  to  Ceylon,  and  then  to  Syria, 
Egypt,  Cyrene,  Macedonia,  and  Epirus,  and  these  mission- 
arises  together  with  the  Buddhist  Dhamma  were  also 
charged  to  diffuse  a  knowledge  of  useful  medicines.  It 
is  due  more  to  Asoka  than  to  any  other  individual  that 
Buddhism  became  and  long  remained  the  predominant 
religion  of  India,  and  indeed  of  Asia,  and  up  to  the 
present  day  counts  more  adherents  than  any  other  faith. 
The  conversion  of  Ceylon  is  recorded  in  the  Chronicles  of 
Ceylon  with  a  wealth  of  picturesque  detail  which  is  partly 
confirmed  by  archaeological  discoveries  in  Northern 
India,  but  cannot  be  regarded  as  historical  m  toto.  In 
184 


Plate  O 


SANCHi  STOPA  and  GATEWAY 

3rd  and  Jnd  century  B.C. 


184 


A  Buddhist  Emperor 

particular,  it  is  related  that  Asoka's  chief  missionary  to 
Ceylon  was  a  son  named  Mahendra,  who  converted  the 
King  of  Ceylon  and  40,000  of  his  subjects.  In  order 
that  the  Princess  Anula  and  other  women  might  also  be 
ordained,  a  return  mission  was  sent  to  request  the  dispatch 
of  Asoka's  daughter  Sanghamitta,  with  a  branch  of  the 
sacred  Bodhi  tree  to  be  planted  in  Ceylon.  It  is  claimed 
that  the  sacred  Bo-tree  still  preserved  at  Anuradhapura 
in  Ceylon,  is  that  same  branch,  which  has  become  the 
oldest  historical  tree  in  the  world.  The  Princess  was 
duly  ordained  by  Sanghamitta  and  became  an  Arahat. 
In  point  of  fact  the  conversion  of  Ceylon  must  have  been 
more  gradual  than  is  here  indicated,  but  there  is  no  doubt 
that  embassies  were  exchanged  and  converts  made.  The 
Sinhalese — not,  of  course,  the  Tamils  who  occupy  a  good 
part  of  the  north  of  the  island — have  remained  Buddhists 
to  this  day,  and  for  the  most  part,  though  not  exclusively, 
of  the  orthodox  Hinayana  persuasion. 
We  must  also  think  of  Asoka  as  a  great  administrator 
and  a  great  builder.  His  Empire  embraced  almost  the 
whole  of  India  and  Afghanistan,  of  which  the  adminis- 
tration was  already  highly  organized  alike  for  record  and 
executive  action.  With  tireless  energy  Asoka  attempted 
the  impossible  task  of  personally  supervising  all  the 
affairs  of  government :  "I  am  never  fully  satisfied,"  he 
says,  "  with  my  efforts  and  my  dispatch  of  business." 
The  essential  character  of  his  rule  was  a  paternal 
despotism.  That  he  successfully  ruled  so  large  an 
Empire  for  forty  years  is  proof  of  his  ability,  as  the 
words  of  his  edicts  are  of  his  strong  individuality — which 
has  been  likened  to  that  of  Cromwell  and  Constantine — 
and  practical  piety. 

We  have  already  mentioned  that  the  Edicts  were  engraved 

185 


Buddlm  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

on  stone,  and  that  many  survive.  Some  of  these  are 
recorded  on  monolithic  pillars ;  by  far  the  finest  of  these 
is  the  pillar  recently  discovered  at  Sarnath,  among  the 
monasteries  on  the  site  of  the  old  deer-park  at  Benares, 
where  Gautama  preached  his  first  sermon.  The  pillar 
was  surmounted  by  a  lion  capital  (Plate  P),  with  a 
string  course  bearing  a  horse,  lion,  bull,  and  elephant  in 
relief,  and  the  Wheel  of  the  Law,  above  a  bell-shaped 
base  of  Persian  character,  such  as  appears  elsewhere  in 
contemporary  architecture.  The  whole  is  of  extra- 
ordinarily perfect  workmanship  only  paralleled  in  finish  by 
the  accurate  fitting  of  some  of  the  Asokan  masonry,  and 
the  burnished  surfaces  of  some  of  the  rock-cells  dedicated 
by  Asoka  for  the  use  of  the  Ajivikas :  and  we  must  not 
forget  the  engineering  skill  implied  in  the  transport  and 
erection,  often  hundreds  of  miles  from  the  present  quarries, 
of  monolithic  pillars  weighing  as  much  as  fifty  tons. 
Asoka's  own  capital  at  Pataliputra,i  modern  Patna,  is 
described  as  follows  by  the  Chinese  pilgrim  Fa  Hien, 
eight  centuries  later : 

"The  royal  palace  and  halls  in  the  midst  of  the  city, 
which  exist  now  as  of  old,  were  all  made  by  spirits  which 
he  employed,  and  which  piled  up  the  stones,  reared  the 
walls  and  gates,  and  executed  the  elegant  carving  and 
inlaid  sculpture  work  in  a  way  which  no  human  hands  of 
this  world  could  accomplish." 

1  Excavations  on  this  site  are  now  in  progress. 


1 86 


l-LAlh    F 


186 


CAPITAL  OF  ASOKA  COLUMN 
Samath,  3rd  century  b.c. 


PART  III  :  CONTEMPORARY 
SYSTEMS 

/.   THE   VEDANTA 

THE  system  of  philosophy  which  is  above  all  the 
philosophy  of  India  is  the  Vedanta,  the  'com- 
pletion '  or  '  goal '  of  the  Vedas :  and  by  this  term 
Vedanta  is  to  be  understood  the  interpretation  of  the  Upani- 
shads,and  of  the  Vedanta  Sutras,  according  to  Sankaracarya 
in  the  ninth  century  a.d.  and  by  Ramanuja  in  the  eleventh. 
It  will  be  seen  that  these  synthetic  interpretations  are  long 
post-Buddhist;  but  that  is  not  the  case  with  the  most 
important  of  the  actual  Upanishads,  viz.  the  Brihad- 
aranyaka  and  the  Chandogya,  which  are  undoubtedly  pre- 
Buddhist.  These  are  likewise  the  most  important  of  the 
Vedanta  scriptures,  and  they  must  be  the  more  referred 
to  here  because  some  writers  have  considered  that  "  it  is 
the  ideas  of  the  Upanishads  which  by  a  kind  of  degenera- 
tion have  developed  into  Buddhism  on  one  side  and  the 
Samkhya  system  on  the  other." 

Just  as  the  Old  Testament  is  superseded  by  the  New,  so 
the  Upanishads  declare  the  insufficiency  of  ritual  and  its 
reward,  and  substitute  for  these  a  religion  of  the  spirit. 
All  the  Upanishads  alike  treat  of  one  subject,  the  doctrine 
of  the  Brahman  or  Atman.  Very  often  these  are  treated 
as  synonymous.  If  or  where  a  distinction  is  made,  then 
the  Brahman  is  the  Absolute,  and  the  Atman  is  that 
Absolute  as  realized  in  the  individual  consciousness ; 
we  can  then  express  the  fundamental  thought  of  the 
Upanishads  by  the  simple  equation 

Brahman  =  Atman. 

If  we    should    seek   a  simile  for   this  identity  we  may 

187 


Buddha  &?  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

find  it  in  the  identity  of  Infinite  Space  with  the  space  in 
any  closed  vessel — shatter  the  bounding  walls  of  the 
vessel,  that  is  to  say,  the  ignorance  that  maintains  our 
seeming  individuality,  and  the  identity  of  space  with 
space  is  patent.  "  That  art  Thou  "—this  is  the  form  the 
equation  takes :  in  the  actual  language  of  the  Brihad- 
aranyaka,  Ta^  tvam  asi.  That  Absolute  is  one  and  the 
same  with  whatever  in  ourselves  we  must  consider  as  our 
true  Self,  the  unchangeable  essence  of  our  being,  our  spirit. 
What  then  is  the  spirit  of  man?  What  am  I  ?  That  is  a 
question  to  which,  as  the  Vedanta  recognizes,  there  may 
be  many  answers.  Even  the  most  idealistic  Upanishads 
do  not  start  by  denying,  as  Gautama  denies,  the  existence 
of  an  I,  a  knowing,  perduring  subject;  it  is  only  by  a 
process  of  elimination  that  the  thought  is  reached  that 
the  Subject  is  No-thing.  Thus,  some  identify  the  ego 
with  the  body,  as  we  still  do  in  everyday  parlance,  when 
for  example,  we  say  'I  am  cold,'  meaning  *The  body 
is  cold.'  But  seeing  that  the  body  visibly  changes 
and  decays  how  are  we  to  identify  our  overwhelming 
consciousness  of  the  eternity  and  freedom  of  our  being 
with  the  mortal  flesh?  Another  answer  postulates  an 
'  Eternal  Soul,'  a  dweller  in  the  body  passing  from  body 
to  body:  this  is  the  well-known  Indian  theory  of  trans- 
migration of  an  individual — for  which,  in  Buddhism, 
is  substituted  the  transmigration  of  character.  Such 
a  soul,  if  imagined  to  be  freed  from  corporeal  fetters, 
may  be  likened  to  the  dream  consciousness,  where  the 
bonds  of  time  and  space  are  loosely  drawn.  Analogous 
to  this  view  is  the  Christian  doctrine  of  an  Eternal 
Soul  which  passes  from  Earth  to  an  Eternal  Heaven 
or  Hell,  and  it  is  against  such  conceptions  of  the  Atman 
that  the  Anatta  theory  of  Buddhism  is  directed.  A 
i88 


The  Vedanta 

third  view  is  idealistic,  recognizing  only  one  supreme 
soul,  wherein  there  is  no  duality,  "neither  shadow  of 
turning"  nor  consciousness  of  subject  and  object.  This 
view,  subject  to  slight  differences  of  interpretation,  forms 
the  common  philosophic  basis  of  a  great  part  of  Eastern 
and  Western  mysticism.  Here  the  state  of  the  self  is 
likened  to  Deep  Sleep.  It  is  this  universal  Self,  one 
without  any  other,  which  the  individual  seeker  pressing 
inward  to  the  centre  finds  in  his  own  consciousness,  when 
nothing  of  himself  is  left  in  him.  Philosophically,  as  we 
have  said,  it  is  reached  by  a  process  of  elimination — the 
superposition  of  attributes,^  and  the  successive  denial  of 
each  in  turn,  as  each  is  found  to  contradict  our  conscious- 
ness of  timeless  being  and  utter  freedom:  and  thus  we 
reach  the  great  Vedantic  formula,  descriptive  of  the 
Atman  or  Brahman  as  'Not  so,  not  so.'  The  'soul'  is, 
then,  void,  No  thing,  it  does  not  pass  from  birth  to  death, 
it  has  no  parts,  it  is  not  subject  to  becoming  nor  to  time, 
but  is  that  timeless  Abyss  which  is  now  as  it  was  in  the 
beginning  and  ever  shall  be.  To  these  three  stations  of 
the  soul  the  later  Upanishads  add  a  fourth,  which  is 
simply  so  called.  The  Fourth. 

We  have,  then,  four  stations.  First  is  the  Waking 
Consciousjicss  of  everyday  experience : 

^  The  full  list  of  these  attributes,  called  Upadhis  or  individualizing 
determinations,  includes  (i)  all  things  and  relations  of  the  outer  world, 
(2)  the  body,  consisting  of  the  gross  elements,  (3)  the  Ifidriyas,  viz.,  the 
five  organs  of  sense  and  the  corresponding  five  organs  of  action,  (4)  the 
Manas  (mind)  or  Antahkarana  (inner  organ)  which  covers  the  under- 
standing and  conscious  will,  the  unified  or  seemingly  unified  principle 
of  conscious  life,  the  '  soul '  in  a  popular  sense,  and  (5)  the  fnukhya 
prana,  vital  airs,  the  similarly  unified  or  seemingly  unified  principle  of 
unconscious  life.  All  these  are  cut  away  by  him  who  finds  the  Self, 
which  is  the  Brahman,  '  not  so,  not  so.' 

189 


Buddha  &  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

IV/icn  the  soul  is  blinded  by  glamotcr  (fudyd) 
It  inhabits  the  body  and  accomplishes  actions  ; 
By  women,  food,  drink,  and  many  enjoyments. 
It  obtains  satisfaction  in  a  waking  condition} 

In  the  second  station,  of  Dream-sleep : 

In  the  dream-state  he  moves  7ip  and  down. 
And  fashions  for  himself  as  god  many  forms. ^ 

In  the  third  station  of  Deep  Sleep  there  is  no  empirical 
consciousness,  but  an  identification  with  the  Brahman. 
This  condition  corresponds  to  the  'Eternal  Rest'  of 
Western  mysticism.  This  state  of  liberation  is  described 
in  a  beautiful  passage  of  the  Brihadaranyaka  Upanishad, 
which  we  transcribe  here  as  an  example  of  the  pre- 
Buddhist  Vedantic  literature : 

"  But  like  as  in  yon  space  a  falcon  or  an  eagle,  after  he 
has  hovered,  wearily  folds  his  pinions  and  sinks  to  rest, 
thus  also  hastens  the  Spirit  to  that  condition  in  which, 
sunk  to  sleep,  he  feels  no  more  desire,  nor  beholds  any 
more  dreams.  That  is  his  (true)  form  of  being,  wherein 
he  is  raised  above  longing,  free  from  evil  and  from  fear. 
For,  like  as  one  whom  a  beloved  woman  embraces,  has 
no  consciousness  of  what  is  without  or  what  is  within,  so 
also  the  Spirit,  embraced  by  the  Self  of  Knowledge  (the 
Brahman),  has  no  consciousness  of  what  is  without  or 
what  is  within.  That  is  his  form  of  being,  wherein  his 
longing  is  stilled,  himself  is  his  longing,  he  is  without 
longing,  and  freed  from  grief.     Then  the  father  is  not 

^  Kaivalya   Upanishad  (12).     This  is  living  on  the  surface,  empirical 

experience. 

2  Brihaddratiyaka  Upanishad  4,  3.     Compare  the  state  of  the  creative 

artist  or  personal  god. 

190 


The  Vcdiinta 

father,  nor  the  mother  mother,  nor  the  worlds  worlds,  nor 
the  gods  gods,  nor  the  Vedas  Vedas  .  .  .  then  is  he 
unmoved  by  good,  unmoved  by  evil,  then  has  he  van- 
quished all  the  torments  of  the  heart,  .  .  .  Yet  is  he  a 
knower,  even  though  he  does  not  know ;  since  for  the 
knower  there  is  no  interruption  of  knowing ;  because  he 
is  imperishable.  ...  He  stands  in  the  tumultuous  ocean 
as  beholder,  alone  and  without  a  second,  he  whose  world 
is  the  Brahman.  This  is  his  highest  goal,  this  is  his 
highest  joy,  this  is  his  highest  world,  this  is  his  highest 
bliss." 
He  who  is  not  thus  liberated,  but  is  still  subject  to  desire. 

After  he  has  received  reward 
For  all  that  he  has  here  perfoinned^ 
He  comes  back  from  that  other  world 
Into  the  world  of  deeds  below. 

But  "  he  who  is  without  desire,  free  from  desire,  whose 
desire  is  stilled,  who  is  himself  his  desire,  his  vital  spirits 
do  not  depart ;  but  Brahman  is  he  and  into  Brahman  he 
resolves  himself "  : 

When  every  passion  titterly  is  gone. 

That  Inrks  and  nestles  in  the  heart  of  man. 

Then  finds  this  mortal  immortality. 

Then  has  he  reached  the  Brahmati,  the  Supreme. 

Of  this  liberation,  the  natural  fruit  in  this  life  is  asce- 
ticism, and  thus — 

*'  This  knew  those  of  old,  when  they  longed  not  for 
descendants,  and  said  :  '  Why  should  we  wish  indeed 
for  descendants,  we  whose  self  is  the  universe  ? '  And 
they  ceased  from  the  longing  after  children,  from  the 
longing   after   possessions    and  from  the   longing   after 

191 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

the  world,  and  wandered  forth  as  beggars.  For  longing 
for  children  is  longing  for  possessions,  and  longing  for 
possessions,  is  longing  for  the  world ;  for  one  like  the 
other  is  merely  longing.  But  He,  the  Atman,  is  No^ 
tJms^  7iot  tlms^ 

There  is  another  station,  called  the  Fourth,  transcending 
alike  Non-being  and  Being.  This  station  is  indicated  in 
the  '  Om '  logion,  and  corresponds  to  the  Western  con- 
ception of  Eternal  Rest  and  Eternal  Work  as  simultaneous 
aspects  of  the  Unity.  Precisely  how  this  station  differs 
from  Deep  Sleep  will  be  apparent  from  the  verses  of 
Gaudapada : 

Dreams  and  sleep  belong  to  the  two  firsts 
A  dreamless  sleep  is  the  possession  of  the  third. 
Neither  dreams  nor  sleep  does  he  who  knows  tt 
Asciibe  to  the  fourth. 

The  dreamer'^ s  knowledge  is  false. 
The  sleeper  knows  fiothing  at  all. 
Both  go  astray ;  where  all  this  vanishes 
There  the  foztiih  state  is  reached. 

It  is  in  the  beginningless  ilhision  of  the  world 

That  the  soul  (indeed)  sleeps :  when  it  (in  sooth)  awakes. 

Then  thei'-e  awakes  in  it  the  eternal. 

Timeless  and  free  fro77i  dreams  and  sleep  alike.  * 

These  lines  are  post-Buddhist,  but  represent  a  perfectly 
logical  development  of  the  conception  of  the  Brahman 
indicated  as  eternal  knower,  without  object,  in  the  phrase 
just  quoted,  "  Yet  is  he  a  knower,  even  though  he  does 
not  know ;  since  for  the  knower  there  is  no  interruption 

^  Here  the  usage  of  the  symbols  of  waking  and  sleeping  is  reversed — 

the  true  awakening  is  a  sleeping  to  the  world. 

T92 


The  Vedanta 

of  knowing,  because  he  is  imperishable."  This  phrase,  it 
may  be  noticed,  vividly  recalls  the  saying  of  the  Buddha 
regarding  the  after-death  state  of  him  who  has  attained 
Nibbana  :  "  But  to  say  of  a  Brother  who  has  been  so  set 
free  by  insight :  '  He  knows  not,  he  sees  not,'  that  were 
absurd  ! "  ^ 

The  object  of  the  Upanishad  teaching,  then,  is  to  remove 
our  ignorance,  for  ignorance  lies  at  the  root  of  desire, 
and  desire,  implying  lack,  is  a  mark  of  imperfection,  and 
cannot  characterize  the  highest  state.  The  knowledge 
which  is  opposed  to  ignorance,  as  light  to  darkness, 
consists  in  the  realization  of  the  unity  of  the  one  which 
is  not  so,  not  so.  This  knowledge  is  not  the  means  of 
liberation,  it  is  liberation  itself. 

He  who  attains  to  the  realization  '  I  am  the  Brahman ' — 
not,  of  course,  who  merely  makes  the  verbal  statement 
— knowing  himself  to  be  the  totality  of  all  that  is,  has 
nothing  to  desire  or  fear,  for  there  is  nought  else  to  fear 
or  to  desire,  nor  will  he   injure  any  being,  for  no  one 
injures  himself   by  himself.     He  who  has  reached  this 
understanding  continues    to  exist,   for  the  consequences 
of  his  former  deeds  are  still  valid  in  the  empirical  world 
of  causality ;  but  life  can  no  longer  deceive  him.     His 
former  works  are  burnt  away  in  the  fire  of  knowledge. 
He  knows  that  his  body  is  not  '  his'  body  nor  his  works 
'  his '  works ;  and  when  he  dies,  his  Self  goes  nowhere 
where  it  is  not  already,  nor  may  he  ever  again  be  subject 
to  the  limitations  of  individual  existence. 
As  rivers  nui  and  ifi  the  deep 
Lose  name  and  form  and  disappear^ 
So  goes,  from  7iame  and  form  released^ 
The  wise  man  to  the  deity. 
^  cf.  supra,  p.  124. 

N  193 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Here  the  Buddhist  thinker  must  ever  bear  in  mind  that 
'  the  deity,'  in  passages  like  this,  refers  to  the  Brahman 
which  is  '  not  so,'  and  not  to  any  personal  god  :  precisely 
as  the  Buddhist  himself  is  constrained  by  the  necessity  of 
language  to  symbolize  Nibbana  as  '  Bliss '  and  the  like. 
Of  Brahman  and  Buddhist  it  may  well  be  said,  as  it  may 
be  said  of  all  religions  in  the  deepest  application — 

ThotL  goest  thhie.,  and  I  go  mine — 

Many  ways  we  wend ; 
Many  days  and^  many  zvays^ 

Ending  in  one  end. 

Many  a  wrong,  and  its  curing  song : 
Many  a  word,  and  many  an  inn  : 

Room  to  7vam,  but  only  one  home 
For  all  the  wojid  to  win. 

II.  SAMKHYA 

There  exists  another  system,  the  Samkhya,  not,  like  the 
Upanishads,  the  creation  of  a  school,  but  known  to  us  as 
formulated  by  one  sage,  of  the  name  of  Kapila ;  from  whom 
most  likely  the  name  of  Kapilavatthu,  the  city  of  Buddha's 
birth  and  youth,  is  derived.  It  is  not  without  significance 
in  this  connexion  that  Buddhism  *'  seems  to  have  arisen 
in  a  quarter  where  Samkhya  ideas  were  dominant,  and 
to  have  borrowed  very  considerably  from  them ;  "  and  the 
fact  that  the  Samkhya  is  really  the  chief  source  of  Bud- 
dhist modes  of  thought,  gives  to  this  system  considerable 
importance  for  our  study.  By  contrast  with  the  monistic 
idealism  of  the  Upanishads,  which  define  the  Atman  or 
Piirusha  (spirit)  as  the  sole  reality,  the  Samkhya  is  an 
explicit  dualism,  postulating  the  eternal  reality  of  Pnrusha 
and  Prakriti,  spirit  and  nature ;  the  Samkhya  moreover 
194 


Samkhya 

speaks  of  a  plurality  of  Ptcriis/ias  or  spirits,  whereas  the 
PtimsJia  of  Vedantic  thought  is  one  and  indivisible. 
Nature  is  the  naturally  undifferentiated  equilibrium  of 
the  three  qualities  sattva^  rajas^  and  tamas,  'goodness, 
passion,  and  inertia';^  evolution  results  from  the  proximity 
of  spirit.  The  first  product  of  differentiation  is  buddliiy 
*  reason ' ;  then  ahanikdra^  '  the  conceit  of  individuality  ' ; 
and  from  this  on  the  one  hand  the  five  subtle  and  five 
gross  elements,  and  on  the  other  vianas,  '  mind '  or 
'  heart,'  and  the  outer  and  inner  organs  of  sense.  These, 
together  with  soul  constitute  the  twenty-five  categories 
of  the  Samkhya.  That  which  migrates  from  body  to 
body  is  not  the  spirit,  for  this  is  unconditioned,  but  the 
characteristic  body,  the  individual  'soul,'  consisting  of 
buddhi,  ahamkara,  manas  and  the  inner  and  outer  organs 
of  sense,  bearing  the  impressions  {samskdras,  vdsands)  of 
its  previous  deeds,  and  obtaining  a  new  physical  body  in 
precise  accordance  with  their  moral  worth. 
The  individual  Purusha — the  jlva — is  unaffected,  even 
in  its  state  of  bondage ;  even  its  apparent  consciousness 
of  subject  and  object  is  a  delusion.  It  is  the  '  inner 
man,'  the  '  soul ' — aiitahkarana^  viz.  buddhi,  ahamkara 
and  manas — moved  by  the  attached  spirit  shining  all 
unconsciously  upon  it,  which  falsely  imagines  itself  to 
be  an  ego ;  in  this  complex  '  soul '  arise  conceptions  of 
pleasure  and  pain,  love  and  hate ;  these  it  projects  upon 
the  Spirit  or  Self,  which  it  thus  knows  only  through  a  glass, 
darkly.  Such  a  vicious  circle  of  life  is  perpetuated  for 
ever,  only  temporarily  interrupted  by  the  cosmic  rhythm 
of  involution  and  evolution,  evolution  and  involution,  in 
successive  seons  {kalpas).  But  some  few  there  are  who, 
after  many  births,  attain  to  saving  knowledge  :  with  the 

^  More  strictly,  the  extremes  and  the  mean. 

195 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

axe  of  reason  is  felled  the  tree  of  the  egoism  of  the 
'  soul,'  and  the  axe  too  being  cast  away,  the  bond  of 
Spirit  and  Matter  is  severed — the  Spirit  is  evermore 
single  {Icaivalyd)  no  more  involved  in  the  wheel  of  birth 
and  death  (samsara).  Whoever  fully  understands  this 
point  of  view,  will  be  prepared  to  understand  the  cardinal 
doctrines  of  Buddhism,  which  differ  chiefly  from  those 
of  the  Samkhya  in  their  tacit  denial  of  Purusha,  or 
perhaps  we  should  rather  say,  in  their  refusal  to  discuss 
aught  but  the  nature  of  the  'soul'  and  the  practical 
means  of  deliverance;  Buddhism  and  the  Samkhya,  with 
the  Vedanta  no  less,  are  agreed  that  pleasure  and  pain 
are  alike  suffering — for  the  impermanence  of  any  pleasure 
constitutes  an  eternal  skeleton  at  the  feast. 

///.   YOGA 

Cease  but  from  thine  own  activity,  steadfastly  fixing  thine  Eye 
upon  one  point. — Beh^nen 

A  third  system,  which  was  well  known,  though  not  yet 
expounded  in  full  detail  before  the  time  of  Buddha,  is 
that  of  Yoga,  or  Union.  This  is  a  discipline  designed  to 
secure  the  deliverance  contemplated  in  the  Samkhya.  It 
has  a  practical  aspect,  which  is  partly  ethical  and  partly 
physiological;  and  a  'kingly'  part,  consisting  of  the 
three  phases  of  meditation,  dharana^  d/iydna,  and  samddhi^ 
in  which  by  concentration  of  thought  the  distinction  of 
subject  and  object  is  overreached,  and  the  soul  becomes 
aware  of  its  eternal  separateness  from  reason  (buddhi) 
and  its  conformations  (samskaras),  and  becomes  for  ever 
single  (kaivalya).  The  system  differs  from  the  Samkhya 
and  from  early  Buddhism  in  that  it  is  not  atheistic — that 
is  to  say,  it  recognizes  an  Overlord  (Isvara),  who  is  a 
196 


Yoga 

particular  and  exalted  purusha,  or  individual  soul,  by 
whom  the  devotee  may  be  aided  on  the  way  of  emanci- 
pation; but  this  isvara  is  by  no  means  essential  to  the 
system,  and  is  but  one  of  the  many  objects  of  meditation 
which  are  suggested  to  the  student.  The  spiritual  exercises 
of  the  Buddhist  contemplative  are  taken  over  almost 
unchanged  from  Brahmanical  sources,  and  for  this  reason 
it  is  not  necessary  to  repeat  here  what  has  already  been 
said  on  this  subject;  but  it  may  be  useful  to  illustrate 
from  a  quite  distinct  source  what  is  the  significance 
of  accomplished  Yoga,  in  the  following  passage  from 
Schelling's  Philosophical  Letters  upon  Dogmatism  and 
Criticism : 

"  In  all  of  us  there  dwells  a  secret  marvellous  power 
of  freeing  ourselves  from  the  changes  of  time,  of  with- 
drawing to  our  secret  selves  away  from  external  things, 
and  of  so  discovering  to  ourselves  the  eternal  in  us  in  the 
form  of  unchangeability.  This  presentation  of  ourselves 
to  ourselves  is  the  most  truly  personal  experience,  upon 
which  depends  everything  that  we  know  of  the  supra- 
sensual  world.  This  presentation  shows  us  for  the  first 
time  what  real  existence  is,  whilst  all  else  only  appears  to 
be.  It  differs  from  every  presentation  of  the  sense  in  its 
perfect  freedom,  whilst  all  other  presentations  are  bound, 
being  overweighted  by  the  burden  of  the  object.  .  .  . 
This  intellectual  presentation  occurs  when  we  cease  to  be 
our  own  object,  when,  withdrawing  into  ourselves,  the 
perceiving  image  merges  in  the  self-perceived.  At  that 
moment  we  annihilate  time  and  duration  of  time :  we  are 
no  longer  in  time,  but  time,  or  rather  eternity  itself  (the 
timeless)  is  in  us.  The  external  world  is  no  longer  an 
object  for  us,  but  is  lost  in  us." 


197 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

/y.  BUDDHISM  AND  BRAHMANISM 
All  writers  upon  Buddhism  are  faced  with  the  difficulty 
to  explain  in  what  respect  the  teaching  of  Gautama  differs 
from  the  higher  phases  of  Brahman  thought.  It  is  true 
that  the  distinction  appeared  clear  enough  to  Gautama 
and  his  successors;  but  this  was  largely  because  the 
Brahmanism  against  which  they  maintained  their  polemic 
was  after  all  merely  the  popular  aspect  of  Brahmanism. 
From  a  study  of  the  Buddha's  dialogues  it  would  appear 
that  he  never  encountered  a  capable  exponent  of  the 
highest  Vedantic  idealism,  such  a  one  as  Yajnavalkhya 
or  Janaka ;  or  if  Alara  is  to  be  considered  such,  Gautama 
took  exception  to  the  Atmanistic  terminology  rather  than 
its  ultimate  significance.  It  appeared  to  Gautama  and 
to  his  followers  then  and  now  that  the  highest  truths — 
especially  the  truth  embodied  by  Buddhists  in  the  phrase 
An-attd,  no-soul — lay  rather  without  than  within  the 
Brahmanical  circle. 

Many  times  in  the  history  of  religions  has  the  Protestant, 
having  thus  easily  carried  the  outer  defences  of  an  Orthodox 
faith,  believed  that  there  remained  no  other  citadel.  It 
may  be,  on  the  other  hand,  that  Gautama  knew  of  the 
existence  of  such  a  Brahman  citadel — where  the  truth 
was  held,  that  the  Atman  is  '  not  so,  not  so ' — but  regarded 
the  surrounding  city  as  so  hopelessly  habituated  to  errors 
of  thought  and  action,  as  to  determine  him  rather  to  build 
upon  a  new  site  than  to  join  hands  with  the  beleaguered 
garrison.  Perhaps  he  did  not  take  into  account  that  all 
such  garrisons  must  be  small,  and  did  not  foresee  their 
final  victory.  However  this  may  be,  it  is  at  least  certain 
that  at  this  period  there  existed  no  fundamental  doctrinal 
opposition  of  Brahmanism  and  Buddhism  ;  but  Gautama, 
198 


Buddhism  <Sf  Brahmanism 

and  some  other  Kshattriyas,  and  some  Brahmans  were 
alike  engaged  in  one  and  the  same  task. 
At  first  sight  nothing  can  appear  more  definite  than  the 
opposition  of  the  Buddhist  An-atta,  'no-Atman,'  and  the 
Brahman  Atman,  the  sole  reality.  But  in  using  the  same 
term,  Atta  or  Atman,  Buddhist  and  Brahman  are  talk- 
ing of  different  things,  and  when  this  is  realized,  it  will  be 
seen  that  the  Buddhist  disputations  on  this  point  lose 
nearly  all  their  value.  It  is  frankly  admitted  by  Professor 
Rhys  Davids  that 

"  The  neuter  Brahman  is,  so  far  as  I  am  aware,  entirely 
unknown  in  the  Nikayas,  and  of  course  the  Buddha's  idea 
of  Brahma,  in  the  masculine,  really  differs  widely  from 
that  of  the  Upanishads."  ^ 

There  is  nothing,  then,  to  show  that  the  Buddhists  ever 
really  understood  the  pure  doctrine  of  the  Atman,  which 
is  '  not  so,  not  so.'  The  attack  which  they  led  upon  the 
idea  of  soul  or  self  is  directed  against  the  conception  of 
the  eternity  in  time  of  an  unchanging  individuality;  of  the 
timeless  spirit  they  do  not  speak,  and  yet  they  claim  to  have 
disposed  of  the  theory  of  the  Atman  1  In  reality  both 
sides  were  in  agreement  that  the  soul  or  ego  (manas, 
ahamkara,  vijiiana,  etc.)  is  complex  and  phenomenal, 
while  of  that  which  is  'not  so'  we  know  nothing. 
Buddhist  dialectic,  by  the  simile  of  the  chariot,  and  so 

1  Dialogues  of  the  Buddha,  i,  p.  298  :  C  A.  F.  Rhys  Davids,  Buddhism, 
p.  57— and  yet  in  the  latter  place  it  is  claimed  that  "  it  is  the  Atmanist 
position  agaiinst  which  the  Buddhist  argument  is  drawn  up."  It  is  just 
this  position  which  Gautama  does  not  refer  to.  The  parting  of  Gautama 
and  Alara  represents,  perhaps,  the  greatest  tragedy  recorded  in  religious 
history.  It  has  been  remarked  with  perfect  justice  by  A.  Worsley  : 
"  It  is  possible  that  had  Gautama  chanced  to  meet,  in  his  earliest 
wanderings,  two  teachers  of  the  highest  truth,  the  whole  history  of  the 
Old  World  might  have  been  changed."— Ct^/xa^^/i  of  Monism,  p.  197. 

199 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

forth,  is  directed  to  show  that  things  are  'Empty';  when 
their  component  elements  are  recognized  there  is  no 
remainder,  but  only  the  'Void';  he  who  realizes  this, 
attains  Nibbana  and  is  freed.  But  we  cannot  distinguish 
this  'Void'  or  'Abyss'  from  that  Brahman  which  is  'No 
thing.' 

It  is  true  that  the  Vedanta  speaks  of  many  Atmans,  three 
or  even  five,  and  also  that  the  j'wd^man  or  'unconditioned 
Self  in  the  individual'  is  sometimes  confused  with  the 
individual  ego  or  discriminating  subject^  (ahamkara  or 
vijnana — as  if  we  should  attribute  individuality  to  a 
portion  of  space  enclosed  in  a  jar,  forgetting  that  space  is 
'  traceless '  and  the  jar  alone  has  '  marks ') ;  but  the  strictly 
non-animistic  view  is  maintained  in  many  other  and  more 
important  passages. ^  Either  Gautama  was  only  ac- 
quainted with  popular  Brahmanism,  or  he  chose  to  ignore 
its  higher  aspects.  At  any  rate,  those  whom  he  defeats 
in  controversy  so  easily  are  mere  puppets  who  never  put 
forward  the  doctrine  of  the  unconditioned  Self  at  all. 
Gautama  meets  no  foeman  worthy  of  his  steel,  and  for 
this  reason  the  greater  part  of  Buddhist  polemic  is  un- 
avoidably occupied  in  beating  the  air.  This  criticism 
applies  as  much  to  modern  as  to  ancient  exposition. 
We  are  told,  for  example,  that  Buddhism  differs  from 
Brahmanism  in  its  refutation  of  the  "then  current  pessi- 
mistic idea  that  salvation  could  not  be  reached  on  earth, 
and  must  therefore  be  sought  for  in  rebirth  in  heaven."  ^ 
But  if  this  idea  was  '  current '  as  a  motif  of  the  sacrificial 
ritual,  it  certainly  was  not  maintained  by  the  Brahman 
idealists.     'That  ar/  thou'  denotes  a  present  condition, 

^   Chdndogya,  7,  and  Brihaddranyaka,  4,  3,  7  f.,  etc. 

2  ChdTidogya^  8,  7-12,  and  Taittiriya^  2. 

^  T.  W.  Rhys  Davids,  Early  Buddhism,  p.  55. 

200 


Buddhism  &^  Brahmanism 

and  not  a  state  to  be  reached  after  death.  "  To-day  also," 
says  the  Brihaddranyaka{\,  4,  10),  "  he  who  knows  this — 
I  am  Brahman — becomes  this  universe;  and  even  the 
gods  have  no  power  to  prevent  his  so  becoming ;  for  he 
is  its  Atman."  In  the  face  of  utterances  such  as  these  we 
cannot  admit  the  suggestion  that  the  doctrine  of  salvation 
here  and  now  was  "  never  clearly  or  openly  expressed  in 
pre-Buddhist  thought."  ^ 

We  also  hear  that  "  in  all  Indian  thought  except 
the  Buddhist,  souls,  and  the  gods  who  are  made  in 
imitation  of  souls,  are  considered  as  exceptions,"  and 
that  "  to  these  spirits  is  attributed  a  Being  without 
Becoming,  an  individuality  without  change,  a  beginning 
without  an  end."  ^  It  is  difficult  to  understand  how  any- 
one acquainted  with  Indian  thought  '  except  the  Buddhist' 
can  make  a  statement  of  this  kind.  For  it  is  clearly 
stated  by  Sankara  that  the  word  '  Indra '  means  "  not  an 
individual,  but  a  certain  position  {sthdna-viscsha),  some- 
thing like  the  word  'General';  whoever  occupies  the 
position  bears  the  name."  ^  This  view  is  taken  for 
granted  in  popular  Hindu  literature ;  it  is  commonly 
held,  for  example,  that  Hanuman  is  to  be  "  the  Brahma" 
of  the  next  aeon.  Moreover  in  the  pre-Buddhist 
Upanishads  the  position  of  the  personal  gods  is  no  more 
privileged  than  it  is  in  Buddhism ;  precisely  as  in 
Buddhism  they  are  represented  as  standing  in  need  of, 
and  capable  of  receiving,  saving  knowledge,  and  in  this 
respect  they  have  no  advantage  over  men.*  Would  it 
be  possible  to  point  to  any  Hindu  text  claiming  for  any 
personal  deity  as  such  a  beginning  without  an  end  ?     And 

1  T.  W.  Rhys  Davids,  Early  Buddhism,  p.  74. 

^  Ilnd.  p.  55  (italics  mine). 

^  Deussen,  System  of  the  Veddnia,  p.  69.  *  Qhdndogya,  8,  7/ 

201 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

if  such  texts  could  be  discovered,  could  they  be  regarded 
as  representing  the  Vedanta  ?     Most  likely,  in  making  the 
statements  above  quoted,  modern  exponents  of  Buddhism 
have  confused  the  position  of  the  Vedic  deities  {devas) 
in  the  Vedanta  with  the  theism  which  is  a   subsequent 
development — analogous  to  the  theistic  developments  in 
.    Buddhism  itself — where  individual  gods  {Ishvaras)  appear 
I    as  symbolical  representatives  of  the  Atman,  taking  the 
forms  that  are  imagined  by  their  worshippers. 
Buddhists   lay   considerable   stress  upon  the  refusal   of 
Gautama  to  allow  speculation  on  the   after-death  state 
of  those  who  attain  Nibbana,  a  refusal  based  on  grounds 
of  expediency.    But  there  is  nothing  peculiar  to  Buddhism 
in  the  refusal  to  speculate,  only  in  the  Vedanta  it  is  not 
based  on  '  practical '  grounds,  but  on  the  ground  of  the 
evident  futility  of  any  such  inquiry,  for,  as  the  Sufis  say, 
"  this  is  too  high  for  our  limited  and  contingent  being." 
Sankara,  for  example,  preserves  an  old  story,  to  the  effect 
that  a  man  of  the  name  of   Bahva  was  questioned  by 
Vashkali  on  the  nature  of  the  Brahman,  and  that  he  kept 
silence.     Being  questioned  a  second  and  a  third  time,  at 
last  he  replied  :  '  I  teach  you,  indeed,  but  you  do  not 
understand  ;   this  Brahman  is  silence.'     For  that  Atman 
of  which  it  is  said  *  That  art  thou '  is  neither  the  body  nor 
the  individual  '  soul ' ;  it  is  not  an  object  of  knowledge, 
but  like  the  future  state  of  the  Arahat  it  lies  on  the  other 
side  of  experience,  invisible, unutterable,  and  unfathomable. 
That  the  Brahman  cannot  be  known  is  again  and  again 
affirmed  in  the  Upanishads  : 

That  to  zvhich  no  eye  penetrates,  nor  speech,  nor  thought. 
Which   remains  tinknown,  and  we  see   it  not,  how  can 
instruction  therein  be  given  to  us'^'^ 

^  Kena  Upanishad, 
202 


Buddhism  &P  Brahmanism 

JVo^  by  speech^  not  by  thought^  not  by  sight  is  he  comp^X' 

hended, 
He  is  !  by  this  woi'dis  he  comprehended^  and  in  no  other  way?- 

Much  confusion  still  exists  amongst  exponents  of  Bud- 
dhism as  to  what  the  doctrine  of  the  Atman  really 
signifies.  The  formula  of  identity,  '  Thou  art  thou,'  is 
hopelessly  distorted  by  Mrs  Rhys  Davids  when  she 
writes : 

"  The  anti-atta  argument  of  Buddhism  is  mainly  and 
consistently  directed  against  the  notion  of  a  soul,  which 
was  not  only  a  persistent,  unchanging,  blissful,  trans- 
migrating, superphenornenal  being,  but  was  also  a  being 
wherein  the  supreme  Atman  or  world  soul  was  immanent, 
one  with  it  in  essence,  and  as  a  bodily  or  mental  factor 
issuing  its  fiat."  ^ 

This  confusion  does  not  belong  to  the  Vedanta  as  under- 
stood by  the  Vedantins.  Buddhists  have  perhaps  always 
made  the  mistake  of  underrating  the  intelligence  of  their 
opponents.  We  can  only  say  that  the  high  intrinsic  value 
of  Buddhist  thought  does  not  demand  a  spurious  exalta- 
tion achieved  by  such  comparison  with  merely  popular 
or  inconsistent  forms  of  Brahmanism.  The  best  must  be 
compared  with  the  best  if  the  best  is  to  be  known. 
Buddhists  very  likely  would  point  to  passages  such  as 

^  Kathaka  Upanishad,  6,  12,  13. 

^  C.  A.  F.  Rhys  Davids,  Buddhist  Psycholog};  19 15,  p.  31.  The  Atman 
is  precisely  that  which  does  not  transmigrate.  The  '  fiat '  seems  to  refer 
to  the  conception  of  the  Brahman  as  inner  guide  {antarydmin)  and 
of  the  universe  as  the  result  of  his  command  {prasdsatiam),  e.g.  in 
Brihaddranyaka,  3,  8,  9.  But  the  language  is  in  this  case  misunder- 
stood. The  '  inner  guide '  is  the  categorical  imperative,  the  highest 
form  of  conscience,  and  with  this  we  may  compare  the  Buddhist 
sanction  '  because  of  Nibbana ' ;  while  the  '  command '  is  that  suchness 
{tattva)  whereby  everything  becomes  as  it  becomes. 

203 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Bhagavad  Gltd^  ii,  22 — "As  a  man  lays  aside  outworn 
garments  and  takes  others  that  are  new,  so  the  Body- 
Dweller  puts  away  unborn  bodies  and  goes  to  others  that 
are  new" — as  animistic,  notwithstanding  that  it  is  con- 
stantly asserted  throughout  the  same  chapter  that  That 
"  is  never  born  and  never  dies."  But  Buddhists  also  are 
compelled  to  make  use  of  current  phraseology,  and  even 
though  they  do  not  mean  to  speak  of  the  transmigration 
of  a  soul,  they  cannot  avoid  saying  that  when  some  one 
dies,  'he'  is  reborn  in  a  new  life,  and  in  the  Pitakas  "  we 
seem  to  see  a  belief  in  transmigration  of  a  passing  soul, 
just  as  much  as  we  see  it  in  the  books  of  animistic 
creeds."  ^  Buddhaghosha  comments  on  this  :  "  It  would 
be  more  correct  not  to  use  popular  modes  of  stating  the 
case,"  and  "  we  must  just  guard  ourselves  "  from  supposing 
that  these  modes  express  fact.  The  difficulties  of  lan- 
guage were  the  same  for  Buddhists  and  Brahmans ;  and 
the  same  allowance  must  be  made  for  both. 
We  are  told  again  that  those  Upanishads  which  are 
ranked  as  the  oldest  "  show  a  naif  animism :  those 
ranked  later  reveal  thought  attained  to  relative 
maturity."^  This  is  a  complete  inversion.  It  is  true, 
indeed,  that  there  are  still  many  animistic  passages  in 
the  old  Upanishads ;  but  the  formulas  '  Not  so,  not  so,' 
and  '  That  art  thou,'  taken  together,  represent  the  highest 
attainment  of  Indian  thought;  and  the  later  Upanishads 
show,  not  an  advance  due  to  the  absorption  of  Buddhist 
ideas,  but  a  reaction  in  favour  of  ritual  and  realistic 
thought  3 — a  sort  of  High  Church  development  not 
without  parallels  in  Buddhism  itself. 

^  C.  A.  F.  Rhys  Davids,  Buddhism,  p.  137. 

^  Rhys  Davids,  Dialogues  of  the  Buddha,  vol.  ii,  p.  48. 

^  Deussen,  Philosophy  of  the  Upanishads,  pp.  64,  65,  i?i    172. 

204 


Buddhism  &f  Brahmanism 

Professor  Rhys  Davids  says  again  "  the  highest  teaching 
current  before  the  Buddha,  and  still  preserved  in  the 
pre-Buddhist  Upanishads,  was  precisely  about  union  with 
Brahma";  we  do  not  know  how  this  statement  is  to  be 
reconciled  with  the  admission  already  cited  that  "the 
Buddha's  idea  of  Brahma,  in  the  masculine,  really  differs 
widely  from  that  of  the  Upanishads."  ^ 
The  '  further  shore '  is  a  symbol  of  salvation  used  by 
both  parties ;  in  the  Tevijja  Sittta  Gautama  suggests 
that  it  is  employed  by  the  Brahmans  to  mean  union  with 
Brahma  (in  the  masculine),  whereas  he  himself  means 
Arahatta.  If  he  really  understood  the  heart  of  the 
Atmanist  position  in  this  manner,  it  proves  that  he  spoke 
without  knowledge ;  if  he  assumed  that  this  was  the 
Brahman  view  for  purposes  of  argument,  he  was  guilty 
of  deliberate  dishonesty. 

The   latter  view  should    not   be   entertained.     But  it  is 
undeniable  that  Gautama's  dialogue  is  largely  determined 
by  controversial  necessity.^     The  compilers  of  the  Dia- 
logues  had   to   represent   the   Buddha  as  victorious  in 
argument,  and  they  succeed  by  setting  up  a  dummy  which 
it  is  easy  to  demolish,  while  the  object  of  nominal  attack, 
the  Atman   theory,   is   never  attached.     Gautama   con- 
stantly accuses  others  of  eel-wriggling,  but  in  the  Dia- 
logues he  adopts  the  same  method  himself.     The  neuter 
Brahman  is  '  quietly  ignored,'  and  words  are  interpreted 
in  new  senses.     In  particular,  the  word  attcl  (Atman)  is 
used    in    a   different   sense   from    that    of   the    Brahman 
atmanists,    and    thus    an    easy   victory   is    secured    by 
'  thinking  of  something  else.'     The  coining  of  the  term 
An-atta  to  imply  the  absence  of  a  perduring  individuality 

^  Dialogues  of  the  Buddha^  vol.  ii,  p.  298. 

2  As  indicated  colso  by  Mrs  Rhys  Davids, /.7?.^..S.  (1903),  P-  59i- 

205 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

is  a  triumph  of  ingenuity,  but  it  should  not  blind  us  to 
the  fact  that  the  perduring  Atman  of  the  Brahmans  was 
not  an  individuality  at  all. 

It  may  readily  be  granted  that  Buddhist  thought  is  far 
more  consistent  than  the  thought  of  the  Upanishads. 
The  Upanishads  are  the  work  of  many  hands  and  extend 
over  many  centuries  ;  amongst  their  authors  are  both 
poets  and  philosophers.  The  Buddhist  Dhamma  claims 
to  be  the  pronouncement  of  a  single  rationalist,  and  to 
have  but  one  flavour.  Gautama  propounds  a  creed  and 
a  system,  and  it  is  largely  to  this  fact  that  the  success  of 
his  missionary  activities  was  due.  The  Upanishads  do 
not  formulate  a  creed,  though  they  constantly  revert  to 
the  thought  of  unity;  it  is  with  Sankara,  or  Ramanuja, 
and  not  with  the  authors  of  the  Upanishads  that  we  must 
compare  Gautama,  if  we  would  see  a  contrast  of  con- 
sistency with  consistency. 

No  one  will  assert  that  the  Upanishads  exhibit  a  consistent 
creed.  But  the  explanation  of  their  inconsistencies  is 
historical  and  leaves  the  truth  of  their  ultimate  conclusions 
quite  untouched.  Gautama's  Dhamma  purports  to  be  the 
considered  work  of  a  single  individual,  and  it  would  be 
strange  indeed  if  it  failed  to  attain  consistency;  the 
Upanishads  are  the  work  of  many  minds,  and  a  com- 
pendium of  many  thoughts.  In  other  words,  the  literature 
of  Indian  thought,  apart  from  Buddhism  as  interpreted  by 
Buddhists,  exhibits  a  continuous  development,  and  knows 
no  acute  crises;  or  rather,  the  real  crises — such  as  the 
identification  of  all  gods  as  one,  and  the  development  of 
the  doctrines  of  emancipation  and  transmigration — are 
not  determined  by  names  and  dates,  they  were  not  announced 
as  the  Dharma  of  any  one  teacher,  and  they  are  only 
recognized  in  retrospection.  Here  there  is  a  gradual 
206 


Buddhism  <Sf  Brahmanism 

process  of  'thinking  aloud,'  wherein  by  stripping  the  self 
of  veil  after  veil  of  contingency  there  is  nothing  left  but 
the  Abyss  which  is  '  not  so,  not  so,'  the  '  Ground '  of  unity. 
From  animism  to  idealism  there  is  direct  development, 
and  it  is  for  this  reason  that  we  meet  with  primitive 
terminologies  invested  with  a  new  significance;  moreover 
the  old  strata  persist  beneath  the  newest  layers,  and  thus 
it  is  not  only  primitive  terms,  but  also  primitive  thoughts 
which  persist  in  the  great  complex  that  we  speak  of  as 
Brahmanism.  But  this  does  not  mean  that  the  highest  of 
these  thoughts  is  primitive,  it  means  only  that  the  historical 
continuity  of  thought  is  preserved  in  the  final  system, 
and  that  system  remains  adapted  to  the  intelligence  of 
various  minds.  Sankara,  writing  long  afterward,  and 
looking  back  on  this  development  as  it  had  so  far  proceeded, 
very  clearly  perceived  this  complexity  of  thought  in  the 
Upanishads,  and  explained  their  inconsistencies  and  con- 
tradictions by  the  brilliant  generalization  in  which  the 
scriptural  teachings  are  divided  into  absolute  or  esoteric 
truth  {para  vidya),  and  relative  or  exoteric  truths  {aparct 
vidya).  With  this  clue  in  our  hands  we  are  able  to  regard 
the  whole  Aupanishadic  literature  as  a  process  of  thought, 
culminating  in  certain  well-defined  formulae,  and  we  can 
distinguish  the  poetic  and  symbolic  nature  of  many  other 
passages  which  do  not  the  less  refer  to  truth  because  they 
speak  in  parables.  The  necessities  of  controversy  may 
have  prevented  the  Early  Buddhists  from  taking  any  such 
extended  view  of  their  'opponent's'  teachings;  or  it  may 
be  that  with  the  best  will,  it  would  have  been  impossible  so 
early  and  so  close  to  the  actual  development  to  synthesize 
the  whole  body  of  Indian  speculation.  However  this  may 
be,  we  find  in  point  of  fact  that  the  essential  thought  of 
the  Upanishads  is  never  grasped  by  the  Early  Buddhists, 

207 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

and  is  sometimes  but  obscurely  apprehended  by  modern 
exponents. 

In  Buddhism  great  stress  is  laid  on  the  doctrine  of  the 
Mean,  both  from  the  standpoint  of  ethics  and  of  truth. 
In  the  latter  case  it  is,  as  usual,  the  phenomenal  world 
alone  which  comes  under  discussion  :  Gautama  repudiates 
the  two  extreme  views,  that  everything  is,  and  that  every- 
thing is  not,  and  substitutes  the  thought  that  there  exists 
only  a  Becoming.^  It  is  due  to  Gautama  to  say  that  the  ab- 
stract concept  of  causality  as  the  fundamental  principle  of 
the  phenomenal  world  is  by  him  far  more  firmly  grasped 
and  more  clearly  emphasized  than  we  find  it  in  the  early 
Upanishads  ;  nevertheless  the  thought  and  the  word 
'  Becoming '  are  common  to  both,  and  both  are  in  agreement 
that  this  Becoming  is  the  order  of  the  world,  the  mark  of 
organic  existence,  from  which  Nibbana,  or  the  Brahman 
(according  to  their  respective  phraseology)  alone  is 
free. 

Where  a  difference  of  outlook  appears  is  in  the  fact  that  the 
Buddha  is  content  with  this  conclusion,  and  condemns  all 
further  speculation  as  undefying ;  and  thus,  like  Sankara, 
he  excludes  for  ever  a  reconciliation  of  eternity  and  time, 
of  religion  with  the  world. 

The  same  result  is  reached  in  another  way  by  those 
Vedantists  of  the  school  of  Sankara  who  developed  the 
doctrine  of  Maya  in  an  absolute  sense  ^  to  mean  the  absolute 
nonentity  of  the  phenomenal  world,  contrasted  with  the 
only  reality  of  the  Brahman  which  alone  is.  This  is  one 
of  the  two  extreme  views  rightly  repudiated  by  Gautama, 
but  there  is  agreement  to  this  extent  that  both  Gautama 
and  the  Mayavadins  reject  the  unreal  world  of  Becoming, 

^  Samyiitta  Nikdya,  xxii,  90,  16. 
^  Svetasvatara  Upanishad^  4,  9-10. 

208 


Buddhism  and  Brahmanism 

either   because    it    is    inseparable  from   Evil,   or  simply 
because  it  is  unreal. 

But  the  interpretation  of  the  term  Maya  to  signify  the 
absolute  nonentity  of  the  phenomenal  world,  if  it  belongs 
to  the  Vedanta  at  all,^  is  comparatively  late ;  and  even  in 
the  Rig  Veda  we  find  another  thought  expressed,  in  which 
the  whole  universe  is  identified  with  the  '  Eternal  Male,'  ^ 
afterward  a  recognized  symbol  of  the  Atman.  The  same 
idea  finds  many  expressions  in  the  Upanishads,  notably  in 
the  saying,  '  That  art  thou.'  Here  in  place  of,  or  side 
by  side  with  the  thought,  '  Not  so,  not  so,'  we  have  the 
equally  true  consideration  of  totalistic  philosophy,  that 
there  is  No  thing  which  That  Brahman  is  not :  That  Brah- 
man, which  is  No  thing,  is  at  the  same  time  All  things. 
To  dismiss  the  world  of  Becoming  as  a  simple  nonentity, 
is  a  false  extreme,  as  rightly  pointed  out  alike  by  Gautama, 
and  in  Isa  Upanishad^  12.  It  is  quite  true  that  things 
have  no  self-existence  as  such,  for  Becoming  never  stops; 
but  the  process  of  Becoming  cannot  be  denied,  and  as  it 
cannot  have  a  beginning,  so  it  cannot  have  an  end. 
There  is  thus  asserted  from  two  points  of  view  an  irre- 
concilable opposition  of  Becoming  and  Being,  Samsdra 
and  Ni7"vd7ia,  This  and  That.  Over  against  these 
extremes  there  appears  another  doctrine  of  the  Mean, 
entirely  distinct  from  that  of  Gautama  which  merely 
asserts   that   Becoming,    and   not  either  Being  nor  non- 

^  Which  is  to  be  doubted.  The  conoeption  of  the  absolute  nonentity 
of  the  phenomenal  world  is  entirely  contrary  to  many  passages  in 
Brihaddranyaka  and  Chdndogya,  as  well  as  to  the  Brahma  Sutra,  i,  2, 
which  asserts  that  '  Everything  is  Brahman.'  It  is  not  the  *  world,'  but 
the  extension  of  the  world  in  time  and  space — the  contraction  and 
identification  into  variety — which  constitutes  Maya.  This  is  the 
Vedanta  according  to  Ramdtwja. 
^  Rig  Veda,  x,  90-2. 

o  209 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Beine  is  the  mark  of  ^/izs  world.  This  other  Mean  asserts 
that  the  Sole  Reality,  the  Brahman,  subsists,  not  merely 
as  not-Becoming,  but  also  as  Becoming:  not  merely  as 
the  unregistrable,  but  also  as  that  of  which  our  registra- 
tion is  and  must  be  imperfect  and  incomplete. 
In  truth,  there  are  two  forms  of  Brahman,  that  is  to  say — 

"  The  formed  and  the  tmformed,  themo7'tal  and  the 

immortal. 
The  abiding  and  the  fleeting,  the  being  and  the 

beyondP  ^  - 

The  Brahman  is  not  merely  nirguna,  in  no  wise,  but  also 
sa7'vagnna,  '  in  all  wise ; '  and  he  is  saved — attains  Nir- 
vana— knows  the  Brahman — who  sees  that  these  are  one 
and  the  same,  that  the  two  worlds  are  one. 
Empirical  truth  (apara  vidya)  is  then  not  absolutely  un- 
true, but  merely  relatively  true,  while  the  absolutely  true 
(para  vidya)  embraces  and  resumes  all  relative  truth ; 
seen  from  the  standpoint  of  our  empirical  consciousness 
it  is  veritably  the  Real  that  is  reflected  through  the  door- 
ways of  our  five  or  six  senses,  and  takes  the  forms  of  our 
imagination.  Here  the  phenomenal  world  is  not  without 
significance,  but  has  just  so  much  significance  as  the  degree 
of  our  enlightenment  allows  us  to  discover  in  it.  "  If  the 
doors  of  perception  were  cleansed  everything  would 
appear  to  man  as  it  is,  infinite." 

From  this  point  of  view  the  doctrine  of  A  vidya  or 
Maya,  ignorance  or  glamour,  does  not  and  should  not 
assert  the  absolute  nonentity  and  insignificance  of  the 
world,  but  merely  that  as  we  see  it  empirically,  extended 
in  the  order  of  space,  time  and  causality,  it  has  no  static 

^  Brihadaranyaka  Upanishad,  2,  3,  i. 
210 


Buddhism  and  Brahmanism 

existence  as  a  thing  in  itself :  our  partial  vision  is  false  in 
so  far,  and  only  in  so  fai%  as  it  is  partial. 
This  position  is  obscured  in  Buddhism,  and  likewise  in 
the  system  of  Sankara,  by  the  emphasis  which  is  laid 
on  Becoming  as  a  state  to  be  avoided;  and  this  hedonistic 
outlook  which  finds  logical  expression  in  monasticism 
and  Puritanism  has  occupied  the  too  exclusive  attention 
of  modern  students.  Too  exclusive,  for  it  is  not  this 
one-sided  view  of  life,  but  the  doctrine  of  the  identity  of 
this  world  and  that,  which  can  and  does  afford  the  key  to 
the  historical  development  of  the  Indian  culture,  the  most 
remarkable  characteristic  of  which  appears  in  a  general 
apprehension  of  the  indivisibility  of  the  sensuous  and  the 
spiritual. 

Another,  and  ethical  Mean  is  put  forward  by  Gautama  as 
the  Middle  Path  between  extremes  of  self-mortification 
and  self-indulgence.  But  here  again  it  must  be  recog- 
nized that  this  is  not  really  a  middle  path,  and  that  it 
remains,  in  contrasting  the  bright  state  of  the  Wanderer 
with  the  dark  state  of  the  Householder,  if  not  at  all 
morbidly  ascetic,  nevertheless  unmistakably  a  rule  of 
abstention,  rather  than  moderation.  Certain  actions  and 
certain  environments  are  condemned  as  bad  in  themselves. 
Gautama  hardly  contemplates  the  possibility  that  freedom 
may  also  be  attained  by  those  who  are  still  engaged  in 
worldly  activities,  nor  that  this  freedom  must  depend  on 
absence  of  motif  rather  than  absence  of  activity;  the 
Jncina  Mdrga  is  for  him  the  only  way.i 
It  is  justly  pointed  out    by  Oldenberg  that    "there  was 

^  Not  only  does  he  not  perceive  that  the  wish  to  avoid  Dukkha  is  in 
itself  a  desire,  and  as  such  a  hindrance,  but  still  less  does  he  see  that 
the  fear  of  pleasure— even  as  it  may  come  unsought— is  a  still  more 
subtle  bondage. 

211 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

nothing  in  Buddha's  attitude  generally  which  could  be 
regarded  by  his  contemporaries  as  unusual,  he  had  not  to 
introduce  anything  fundamentally  new;  on  the  contrary, 
it  would  have  been  an  innovation  if  he  had  undertaken 
to  preach  a  way  of  salvation  which  did  not  proceed  on 
a  basis  of  monastic  observances."  ^ 

The  first  systematic  expression  of  such  an  'innovation,' 
of  which  the  source  and  sanction  are  to  be  found  in  the 
already  old  doctrine  of  the  identity  of  This  and  That, 
Becoming  and  not- Becoming,  is  in  the  Bhagavad  Gita. 
This  is  variously  dated  as  between  400  b.c.  and  a.d.  200, 
but  whatever  remodelling  it  may  have  undergone  it  can 
hardly  be  doubted  that  its  essential  thought  is  the  recog- 
nition of  Karma  Yoga  and  Bhakti  Yoga  side  by  side  with 
Jndna  Yoga  as  '  means '  of  salvation : 
"  It  was  with  works  that  Janaka  and  others  came  into 
adeptship;  thou  too  shouldst  do  them,  considering  the 
order  of  the  world  ...  as  do  the  unwise,  attached  to 
works,  so  should  the  wise  do,  but  without  attachment, 
seeking  to  establish  order  in  the  world." 
"  He  who  beholds  in  Work  No-work,  and  in  No-Work 
Work,  is  the  man  of  understanding  amongst  mortals  ;  he 
is  in  the  rule,  a  doer  of  perfect  work.  .  .  .  Free  from 
attachment  to  the  fruit  of  works,  everlastingly  contented, 
unconfined,  even  though  he  be  engaged  in  Work  he  does 
not  Work  at  all." 

"  Casting  off  all  thy  Works  upon  Me  with  thy  mind  on 
the  One  over  Self,  be  thou  without  craving  and  without 

1  Buddha,  English  translation,  ed.  2  (1904),  p.  119.  It  is  true  that  the 
layman  Arahat  is  not  altogether  unknown  to  Early  Buddhism  (twenty- 
one  are  mentioned  in  the  Anguttara  Nikaya,  iii,  451,  and  Suddhodana, 
Gautarrka's  father  is  also  specially  mentioned),  but  the  fulfilment  of 
worldly  duties,  however  selflessly,  was  never  preached  as  a  way  of 
salvation. 
212 


Buddhism  and  Brahmanism 

thought  of  a  Mine,  and  with  thy  fever  calmed,  engage  in 
battle." 

Thus  it  is  that  even  laymen  may  attain  to  perfect  freedom, 
in  a  life  obedient  to  vocation,  if  only  the  activity  be  void 
of  motive  and  self-reference.  The  degree  of  bondage 
implied  in  various  environments  depends  entirely  on 
the  outlook  of  the  individual,  and  not  on  any  good  or  bad 
quality  intrinsic  in  any  thing  or  any  status.  Bondage  and 
deliverance  are  alike  to  be  found  in  the  home  and  in  the 
forest,  and  not  more  nor  less  in  one  than  the  other  ;  every- 
thing alike  is  Holy  (in  terms  of  Buddhism,  'Void'),  and 
men  and  women  are  not  less  so  than  mountains  or  forests. 
Above  all,  this  reconciliation  of  religion  with  the  world 
is  practically  manifested  in  selfless  obedience  to  vocation 
{sva-dharma) ;  for  notwithstanding  this  world  is  but  a 
Becoming,  it  has  a  meaning  which  cannot  be  fathomed 
by  those  who  turn  their  backs  upon  it  in  order  to  escape 
from  its  pains  and  elude  its  pleasures. 
Precisely  the  same  crisis  that  we  here  speak  of  as  dis- 
tinguishing Buddhism  from  Brahmanism,  is  passed  through 
in  the  history  of  Brahmanism  itself,  and  must,  perhaps,  be 
passed  over  in  the  history  of  every  school  of  thought  that 
attains  to  its  full  development.  It  had  been  held  amongst 
Brahmans,  as  it  had  been  also  for  a  time  assumed  by 
Gautama,  that  salvation  must  be  sought  in  penance 
[tapas)  and  in  the  life  of  the  hermit.  Gautama  intro- 
duced no  radical  change^  in  merely  insisting  on  the  futility 
of  carrying  such  disciplines  to  a  morbid  extreme.     But  in 

^  Perhaps  we  ought  to  say  no  change  at  all,  for  it  would  be  difficult  to 
point  to  any  early  or  important  Brahmanical  text  advocating  a  mental 
and  moral  discipline  more  severe  than  that  of  the  IJuddhist  Brethren  ; 
on  the  contrary,  the  Upanishads  constantly  insist  that  salvation 
is  won  by  knowledge  alone,  and  that  all  else  is  merely  preliminary. 

213 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Brahman  circles,  that  wide  movement  of  thought,  of  which 
Gautama  reveals  but  a  single  phase  and  a  single  stage, 
culminates  in  a  very  different  theory  of  tapas,  which  is 
expressed  as  follows  in  the  Mdnava  Dharma-sdstra : 
"  The  tapas  of  the  Brahmana  is  concentrated  study ;  of  the 
Kshattriya,  protection  of  the  weak ;  of  the  Vaishya,  trade 
and  agriculture ;  of  the  Sudra,  service  of  others.  .  .  . 
For  the  Brahman,  tapas  and  vidya,  self-denial  and  wisdom, 
are  the  only  means  to  the  final  goal,  etc." 
This  is  merely  another  version  of  the  doctrine  of  vocation 
already  referred  to. 

It  is  perfectly  true  that  the  more  deeply  we  penetrate 
Buddhist  and  Brahmanical  thought,  the  less  is  it  possible 
to  divide  them.  If,  for  example,  we  imagine  the  question 
propounded  to  a  teacher  of  either  persuasion,  '  What  shall 
I  do  to  be  saved?' — the  same  answer  would  be  made, 
that  salvation  veritably  consists  in  overcoming  the  illusion 
that  any  such  ego — '  I ' — exists,  and  the  way  to  this 
salvation  would  be  described  as  the  overcoming  of  craving. 
These  are  indeed  the  answers  of  Christ  and  of  all  other 
great  Masters :  He  that  loses  his  life  shall  save  it ;  Thy 
will,  not  mine.  It  is  when  we  proceed  to  formulate  a 
discipline  that  distinctions  arise,  and  here  that  the 
idiosyncrasy  of  the  individual  teacher  becomes  most 
evident.  Gautama's  scheme  of  the  Ariyan  Eightfold  Path, 
as  a  complete  scheme,  is  universal  only  in  the  sense  that 
in  all  lands  and  in  all  ages  there  are  to  be  found  indi- 
viduals of  rationalist  and   ascetic  temperament  kindred 

The  fruit  of  asceticism  as  such,  as  of  all  other  deeds,  must  be 
finite  in  itself:  "  Of  a  truth,  O  Gargi,"  says  Yajnavalkhya,  himself  a 
hermit,  "he  who  does  not  know  this  imperishable  One,  though  in  this 
world  he  should  distribute  alms  and  practise  penance  {tapas  tapyate) 
for  many  a  thousand  years,  thereby  wins  but  finite  good." — Brihad- 
dranyaka  Upa?nshad,  3,  8,  10. 
214 


Buddhism  and  Brahmanism 

with  his  own.  If  we  liken  Early  Buddhism  to  a  '  Lesser 
Raft,'  then  we  may  justly  speak  of  Brahmanism,  as  of  the 
'Mahayana,'  as  a  Greater  Vessel;  each  conveys  the 
traveller  to  his  desired  haven,  but  the  larger  vessel  serves 
the  needs  of  a  greater  variety  of  men.  Here  is  to  be 
sought  the  explanation  of  that  final  'victory'  of  Hind- 
duism  and  of  the  Mahayana,  which  the  exponents  of 
Early  Buddhism,  and  of  the  '  pure  religions  of  the  Vedas ' 
have  agreed  to  regard  as  a  descent  into  superstition  and 
priestcraft. 

It  had  been,  and  always  remained  to  a  certain  extent  a 
principle  of  Brahmanism  to  impart  the  highest  teachings 
only  in  pupillary  succession  to  those  who  show  themselves 
qualified  to  receive  it.  The  fact  of  Gautama's  ignorance 
of  the  Atmanist  position  may  be  taken  to  prove  that  in  his 
day  the  doctrine  of  the  Atman  was  still  an  esoteric  truth 
known  only  to  the  few.  Gautama,  on  the  other  hand, 
while  he  refused  to  answer  insoluble  problems  of  escha- 
tology  and  metaphysics,  expressly  says  that  he  does  not 
reserve  an  esoteric  doctrine ;  all  his  sermons  were  preached 
in  public,  and  accessible  to  laymen  and  to  women.  He 
did  not  reserve  to  twice-born  castes  the  right  to  enter  the 
spiritual  order,  and  it  has  been  estimated  that  some  ten 
per  cent,  of  the  Brethren  were  'low-born';  for  him,  the 
only  true  Brahman  is  the  man  who  excels  in  wisdom  and 
goodness. 

On  these  grounds  it  is  sometimes  assumed  that  Gautama 
was  a  successful  social  reformer  who  broke  the  chains  of 
caste  and  won  for  the  poor  and  humble  a  place  in  the 
kingdom  of  the  spirit.  But  this  view  of  the  mission  of 
Gautama,  whose  kingdom,  like  that  of  Jesus,  was  not  of 
this  world,  is  unhistorical.  Had  Gautama  been  of  those 
who  seek  to  improve  the  world  by  good  government,  and 

215 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

to  secure  their  just  rights  for  the  poor  and  despised,  he 
would  not  have  left  his  kingdom  to  become  a  homeless 
wanderer,  he  would  not  have  preferred  the  status  of  a 
teacher  to  that  of  a  powerful  prince ;  there  need  have  been 
no  '  Great  Renunciation,'  but  history  would  have  recorded 
another  Asoka,  fulfilling  the  ideal  of  an  earthly  Dharmaraja 
such  as  Rama.  But  Gautama,  when  he  saw  the  sick  and 
the  dying  did  not  think  of  suffering  as  due  to  external  causes, 
or  to  be  alleviated  by  the  bettering  of  the  social  order ; 
he  saw  that  suffering  was  bound  up  with  the  ego-asserting 
nature  of  man,  and  therefore  he  taught  nothing  but  a 
mental  and  moral  discipline  designed  to  root  out  the 
conceit  of  an  I.  It  is  made  abundantly  clear  that  Gautama 
regards  the  state  of  the  world  as  hopeless  and  irremediable, 
and  while  the  truth  of  this  is  in  one  sense  undeniable,  and 
the  Brahmans  were  equally  aware  of  it,^  and  of  the 
relativity  of  all  ethics,  nevertheless  it  is  they,  and  not 
Gautama,  who  have  seen  a  profound  significance  in  the 
maintenance  of  the  order  of  the  world,  considering  it  a 
school  where  ignorance  may  be  gradually  dispelled.  It  is 
they  who  occupied  themselves  with  the  development  of  an 
ideal  society,  which  they  anticipated  in  the  Utopias  of 
Valmiki,  Vyasa,  and  Manu.  Had  any  Buddhist  pointed 
out  to  a  Brahman  philosopher  the  impossibility  of  estab- 
lishing a  millennium,  the  latter  would  have  replied  that 
he  found  significance  in  the  task  itself,  and  not  in  its 
achievement. 

There  is  too  a  fallacy  in  the  very  suggestion  that  Gautama 
could  have  broken  the  chains  of  caste;  for  notwithstanding 
that  those  skilful  craftsmen,  the  Brahman  Utopists  referred 
to,  were  already  at  work,  the  so-called  chains  were  not 

^  For  example,  aio  'nyad  artam,   '  What  is   distinct   from   Him    (the 
Brahman),  that  is  full  of  suffering.' — Brihadaranyaka,  3,  4,  2,  etc. 
216 


Buddhism  and  Brahmanism 

yet  forged.  The  caste  system  as  it  now  exists  is  a  sort  of 
*  Guild  Socialism '  supported  by  theocratic  sanctions  and 
associated  with  eugenics ;  each  caste  being  self-governing, 
internally  democratic,  and  having  its  own  norm  {sva- 
d/mnna).  We  need  not  discuss  the  merit  or  demerit  of 
this  system  here;  but  it  must  be  realized  that  in  the  time 
of  Gautama  the  system  had  not  yet  crystallized.  What 
already  existed  was  a  classification  of  men  according  to 
complexion,  in  the  'Four  Varnas'  or  colours;  each  of 
these  included  many  groups  which  afterward  crystallized 
as  separate  castes.  Moreover  at  this  time  the  position  of 
the  Brahmans  as  leaders  of  society  was  not  yet  secure  ;  we 
cannot  regard  the  indications  of  the  Brahman  Utopists  as 
historical,  and  it  would  appear  that  the  status  of  Brahmans 
in  the  age  of  Gautama  was  somewhat  lower  than  that  of 
Kshattriyas.  At  any  rate  in  Magadha  the  intellectual 
rank  of  the  latter  is  sufficiently  indicated  by  their  achieve- 
ments, such  as  the  formulation  of  the  Atman  doctrine, 
the  institution  of  wandering  friars,  the  An-atta  doctrine 
of  Gautama,  the  teachings  of  Mahavira,  and  so  forth. 
Nevertheless  it  is  clear  that  the  Brahmans  claimed  in- 
tellectual and  ethical  superiority;  and  no  one  acquainted 
with  Indian  history  can  doubt  that  Indian  Brahmans- 
born  have  to  a  large  extent  deserved  by  character  and 
achievement  the  respect  in  which  they  have  always  been 
held;  it  is  easy  to  criticize,  as  did  Gautama,  the  empirical 
method  of  determining  Brahmanhood  by  birth,  but  this 
was  the  most  practical  method  that  could  be  devised,  and 
the  world  has  yet  to  discover  a  better  way  to  secure  in  all 
its  affairs  the  guidance  of  the  wisest.  Gautama  does  not 
offer  any  alternative  to  the  doctrine  of  Brahmanhood  by 
birth,  regarded  as  the  solution  to  a  social  problem — the 
means  of  preserving  a  given  type  of  high  culture.     He 

217 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

was  able  to  ignore  this  problem,  only  because  he  wished 
that  all  hieher  men  should  '  wander  alone.' 
At  the  same  time  it  is  not  only  Gautama  who  sought  to 
use  the  term  Brahman  in  a  purely  ethical  sense;  the  same 
usage  is    found    in    the    pre-Buddhist    Brihaddra^iyaka 
Upaiiishad  (iii,  5,  i)  and  elsewhere.     Even  where,  as  in 
Manu,  the  doctrine  of  Brahmanhood  by  birth  is  taken  for 
granted,  we  find  it  said  that  the   Brahman  is  born  for 
dharma  alone  and  not  for  wealth  or  pleasure ;   while  the 
(later)  Mai'kandeya  Pmmia  lays  down  that  nothing  is  per- 
mitted to  be  done  by  the  Brahman  "for  the  sake  of  enjoy- 
ment."   And  with  regard  to  the  remaining  point,  the  right  of 
the  lowest  classes  to  share  in  the  kingdom  of  the  spirit :  this 
was  by  no  means  first  or  only  asserted  by  Gautama ;  it  is, 
for  example,   taken  for  granted  in  the   Samanna-phala 
Sutta  that  religious  orders  already  existing  in  the  time  of 
Gautama  and  not  founded  by  him  admitted  even  slaves 
to  their  ranks,  and  in  many  others  of  the  Buddhist  Suttas 
there  are  mentioned  Sudras  who  became  Wanderers,  as 
if  it  were  a   common    occurrence  and   well  recognized. 
And  if  the  Brahmans  were  careful  to  exclude  the  unculti- 
vated classes  from  hearing  the  Vedas  repeated  and  taught, 
this  applied  almost  entirely  to  the  older  Vedic  literature, 
in  its  priestly  and  magical  aspects;  although  the  doctrine 
of  the  Atman  may  have  been  known  to  few  in  the  days 
of  Gautama  (and  it  is  in  the  nature  of  things  that  such 
doctrines   must  long  remain  in  the  hands  of   the  few) 
nevertheless  the  Brahmanical  objection  to  Sudra  initia- 
tion does  not  extend  to  the  Upanishads,  which  constitute 
that  part  of  the  Veda  which  alone  in  itself  suffices  for 
salvation.    Moreover,  we  have  to  know  that  the  Brahmans 
themselves,  by  means  of  the   Epics  (and  especially  the 
Bhagavad  Gita)  and  the  Puranas,  deliberately  undertook 
218 


Buddhism  and  Brahmanism 

and    accomplished   that  education   of   the  whole   Indian 
people,  women  included,  which  has  made  them,  from  the 
standpoint  of  character  and  courtesy,  if  not  of  technical 
literacy,  the  most  educated  race  in  the  world.    In  comparing 
Buddhism    (the    teaching    of    Gautama,    that    is)    with 
Brahmanism,    we    have    then    to   understand    and    take 
into  account   the   difference   of   the  problem    sought   to 
be   solved.     Gautama  is  concerned  with   salvation  and 
nothing  but  salvation :  the  Brahmans  likewise  see  in  that 
siLmnmm  domcm  the  ultimate  significance  of  all  existence, 
but  they  also  take  into  account  the  things  of  relative 
importance;    theirs   is   a  religion  both  of  Eternity  and 
Time,   while    Gautama   looks   upon    Eternity  alone.     It 
is  not  really  fair   to   Gautama  or  to  the   Brahmans  to 
contrast  their  Dhaima ;  for  they  do  not  seek  to  cover  the 
same  ground.     We  must  compare  the   Buddhist  ethical 
ideal    with    the    (identical)    standard    of    Brahmanhood 
expected  of   the   Brahman  born  ;    we  must  contrast  the 
Buddhist  monastic  system  with  the  Brahmanical  orders  ; 
the  doctrine  of  Anatta  with  the  doctrine  of  the  Atman, 
and  here  we  shall  find  identity.     But  if  the  exponents  of 
Buddhism  insist  on  confining  the  significance  of  Buddhism 
to  what    is   taught  by  Gautama,  we  must  point  out  at 
the  same  time  that  it  stands  for  a  restricted  ideal,  which 
contrasts  with    Brahmanism  as  a  part   contrasts  with  a 
whole  ;    Buddhism   might  well   have  been  accounted  by 
Vijiiana  Bhikshu  as  a  'seventh  darsajia.^ 
Just    as   with    the   history  of   the   various    Brahmanical 
darsanas,  so  with  Buddhism  as  a  sect  there  remains  much 
to  be  accomplished  in  historical  elucidation  and  in  exegesis 
and    interpretation.     But    a    more    important   task    has 
hardly  been  envisaged :  the  connected  historical  study  of 
Indian  thought  as  an  organic  entirety.     Just  as  we  now 

219 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

see  clearly  that  Indian  architecture  cannot  be  divided  into 
styles  on  a  sectarian  basis,  but  is  always  primarily  Indian, 
so  also  with  the  philosophic  and  religious  thought. 
There  is  no  true  opposition  of  Buddhism  and  Brahmanism, 
but  from  the  beginning  one  general  movement,  or  many 
closely  related  movements.  The  integrity  of  Indian 
thought,  moreover,  would  not  be  broken  if  every  specifi- 
cally Buddhist  element  were  omitted;  we  should  only 
have  to  say  that  certain  details  had  been  less  adequately 
elaborated  or  less  emphasized.  To  some  Buddhists  may 
be  recommended  the  words  of  Asoka : 
"He  who  does  reverence  to  his  own  sect  while  dis- 
paraging the  sects  of  others  wholly  from  attachment  to  his 
own,  with  intent  to  enhance  the  splendour  of  his  own 
sect,  in  reality  by  such  conduct  inflicts  the  severest  injury 
on  his  own  sect.  Concord,  therefore,  is  meritorious,  to 
wit,  hearkening  and  hearkening  willingly  to  the  Dharma 
accepted  by  others." 

To  sum  up :  Gautama  does  not  enunciate  the  conception 
of  Freedom  as  a  state  independent  of  environment  and 
vocation ;  the  unity  of  his  system,  like  that  of  Haeckel's, 
is  only  achieved  by  leaving  out  of  account  the  Unregis- 
trable ;  in  a  majority  of  fundamentals  he  does  not  differ 
from  the  Atmanists,  although  he  gives  a  far  clearer 
statement  of  the  law  of  causality  as  the  essential  mark  of 
the  world  of  Becoming.  The  greater  part  of  his  polemic, 
however,  is  wasted  in  a  misunderstanding.  Implicit 
in  Brahman  thought  from  an  early  period,  on  the  other 
hand,  and  forming  the  most  marked  features  of  later 
Indian  mysticism — achieved  also  in  the  Mahayana,  but 
with  greater  difficulty — is  the  conviction  that  ignorance  is 
maintained  only  by  attachment,  and  not  by  such  actions  as 
are  void  of  purpose  and  self-reference ;  and  the  thought 
220 


Buddhism  and  Brahmanism 

that  This  and  That  world,  Becoming  and  Being,  are  seen 
to  be  one  by  those  in  whom  ignorance  is  destroyed.  In 
this  identification  there  is  effected  a  reconciliation  of 
religion  with  the  world,  which  remained  beyond  the  grasp 
of  Theravada  Buddhists.  The  distinctions  between  early 
Buddhism  and  Brahmanism,  however  practically  import- 
ant, are  thus  merely  temperamental ;  fundamentally  there 
is  absolute  agreement  that  bondage  consists  in  the  thought 
of  I  and  Mine,  and  that  this  bondage  may  be  broken  only 
for  those  in  whom  all  craving  is  extinct.^  In  all  essentials 
Buddhism  and  Brahmanism  form  a  single  system. 

^  Those  who  claim  that  Buddha  did  not  teach  the  extinction  of  desire 
do  him  less  than  justice.  Even  Nietzsche  teaches  a  nishkama  dharma 
when  he  says :  '  Do  I  then  strive  after  happiness  ?  I  strive  after  my 
work ! ' 


221 


PART  IV  :  THE  MAHAY  ANA 

/.  BEGINNINGS  OF  THE  MAHAYANA 

A  FIRST  Buddhist  council  was  summoned  in  the 
reign  of  Asoka — about  240  b.c. — with  a  view  to 
the  settlement  of  sectarian  disputes.  It  is  clear 
that  heresies  had  already  arisen,  for  certain  of  Asoka's 
edicts  are  concerned  with  the  unfrocking  of  schismatics ; 
and,  indeed,  we  know  that  heresies  were  promulgated 
even  during  the  life  of  the  Buddha  himself.  In  course  of 
time  we  find  that  a  large  number  of  sects  developed,  all 
equally  claiming  to  be  followers  of  the  true  doctrine,  just 
as  has  been  the  case  with  Christianity  and  every  other 
great  faith.  The  Buddhist  sects  are  divided  into  two 
main  groups :  those  of  the  Hinayana  ('  The  Little  Raft ') 
and  the  Mahayana  ('The  Great  Raft').  The  former, 
whose  scriptures  are  preserved  in  Pali,  claim  to  represent 
the  pure  original  teaching  of  Gautama,  and  do  in  the 
main  preserve  its  rationalistic,  monastic  and  puritanical 
features  to  a  marked  extent :  the  latter,  whose  scriptures 
are  in  Sanskrit,  interpret  the  doctrine  in  another  way, 
with  a  development  that  is  mystical,  theological  and 
devotional.  The  Hinayana  has  maintained  its  supremacy 
mainly  in  the  South,  particularly  in  Ceylon  and  Burma; 
the  Mahayana  mainly  in  the  North,  in  Nepal  and  China. 
But  it  is  misleading  to  speak  of  the  two  schools  as 
definitely  Northern  and  Southern. 

Let  us  recall  that  according  to  the  orthodox  Hinayana, 
Gautama  was  originally  a  man  like  other  men,  and 
differed  from  others  only  in  his  intuitive  penetration  of 
the  secret  of  life  and  sorrow,  in  his  perception  of  things 
as  they  really  are,  as  an  eternal  Becoming;  with  that 
knowledge  he  attained  Nibbana,  and  for  hira  the  causes 
222 


Beginnings  of  the  Mahayana 

of  birth  were  extinguished.  Other  men,  to  whom  the 
Way  has  been  revealed  by  the  Buddha  or  his  disciples, 
can  attain  to  Arahatta  and  Nibbana,  but  are  not  regarded 
as  Buddhas,  nor  is  it  suggested  that  every  creature 
may  ultimately  reach  the  condition  of  Buddhahood.  Specu- 
lation is  forbidden  as  to  whether  the  Buddha  and  the 
Arahats  exist  or  do  not  exist  after  the  death  of  the  body. 
If  now  we  survey  the  canonical  scriptures  as  a  whole — 
written  down  in  Pali  about  80  b.c. — we  shall  find  that 
they  include  certain  elements  which  are  more  or  less 
inconsistent  with  this  pure  intellectual  doctrine  which 
appears  to  have  formed  the  very  consistent  Dhamma  of 
Gautama  himself.  In  the  dialogue  of  Pasenadi,  king  of 
Kosala,  with  the  nun  Khema,  regarding  the  state  of  the 
Buddha  after  death,  we  find :  "  Released,  O  great  king, 
is  the  Perfect  One  from  this,  that  his  being  should  be 
gauged  by  the  measure  of  the  corporeal  world:  he  is 
deep,  immeasurable,  unfathomable  as  the  great  ocean."  ^ 
Here  is  at  least  the  suggestion  that  the  undetermined,  the 
unregistrable,  that  which  is  other  than  Becoming,  yet 
is,  though  beyond  our  ken  or  understanding.  In  another 
place,  answering  the  question :  What  kind  of  being  is  a 
Buddha?  Gautama  himself  is  made  to  reply  that  he  is 
neither  a  Deva,  nor  a  Gandharva,  nor  a  Yakkha  nor  a 
man,  but  is  a  Buddha.  It  may  be  intended  only  that  a 
Buddha  must  not  be  regarded  as  an  ordinary  man ;  never- 
theless there  is  clearly  to  be  seen  here  an  opening  for  the 
later  Mahayana  doctrine  of  the  Body  of  Transformation. 
We  find,  again  (in  the  Ududa,  viii,  3),  the  following 
passage,  which  sounds  more  like  a  Brahmanical  than  a 
Buddhist  saying: 
"There  is,  O  Bhikkhus,   an  unborn,   unoriginated,   un- 

^  Avyakala  Samyuiia,  i. 

223 


Buddha  (Sf  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

created,  unformed.  Were  there  not,  O  Bhikkhus,  this 
unborn,  unoriginated,  uncreated,  unformed,  there  would 
be  no  escape  from  the  world  of  the  born,  originated, 
created,  formed." 

It  may  also  be  remarked  that  the  most  definite  and  uni- 
versal verbal  profession  of  the  Buddhist  or  convert  runs : 
'  I  take  refuge  in  the   Buddha,  the   Dhamma,   and  the 
Sangha'  (collectively,   the   'Three  Jewels').^     No  doubt 
this  formula  was  first  used  in  the  lifetime  of  Gautama, 
whose  own  person  may  well  have  seemed  to  the  world- 
weary  a  haven  of  refuge,  no  less  than  the  Gospel  and  the 
Order.     But  after  his  death,  what  can  the  words,  '  I  take 
refuge  in  the  Buddha,'  have  meant  to  a  layman,  or  any 
but  the  most  critical  of  the  Brethren?     It  did  not  mean 
the   Buddha's  gospel,  for  that  is  separately  mentioned. 
Those  women  and  others  whom  we  see  in  the  sculptured 
reliefs  of  Sanchi  and  Amaravati,  kneeling  with  passionate 
devotion  and  with  offerings  of  flowers  before  an  altar, 
where  the  Buddha  is  represented  by  the  symbols  of  the 
footprints   or  the  wisdom-tree    (Plate  O) — what  did    it 
mean  to  them  to  take  refuge  in  the  Buddha  ? 
This  phrase  alone  must  have  operated  with   the  subtle 
power  of  hypnotic  suggestion  to  convince  the  worshipper 
— and  the  majority  of  men  are  worshippers  rather  than 
thinkers  by  nature — that  the  Buddha  still  was,  and  that 
some  relation,  however  vaguely  imagined,  could  be  estab- 
lished between  the  worshipper  and    Him-who-had-thus- 
attained.     It   was,  almost  certainly,   the  growth  of  this 
conviction  which  determined  the  development  of  Buddhist 

^  The  doctrine  of  devotion  also  occurs  in  another  form,  where  almost 
in  the  words  of  the  Bhagavad  Gltd,  Gautama  is  made  to  say  that  those 
who  have  not  yet  even  entered  the  Paths  "are  sure  of  heaven  if  they 
have  love  and  faith  towards  Me." — Majjhima  Nikdya,  22. 
224 


Beginnings  of  the  Mahayana 

iconolatry  and  all  the  mystical  theology  of  the  Mahayana. 
It  is  the  element  of  worship  which  changed  the  monastic 
system  of  Gautama  into  a  world-religion. 
In  the  earliest  Buddhist  literature  the  word  '  Buddha '  has 
not  yet  come  to  be  used  in  a  technical  sense :  Gautama 
never  speaks  of  himself  as  "  the  Buddha,"  and  when  others 
do  so  the  term  means  simply  the  Enlightened  One,  the 
Awakened.     The  Buddha  is  but  the  wisest  and  greatest 
of  the  Arahats.     In  course  of  time  the  term  became  more 
specialized   to   mean  a  particular  kind  of  being;    while 
the    term    Bodhisatta,   or   Wisdom-Being,   first   used   of 
Gautama  between  the  Going-forth  and  the  attainment  of 
Nibbana,  came  to  mean  a  Buddha-designate — any  being 
destined  to  become  a  Buddha  in  this  or  some  future  life. 
This  doctrine  of  the  Bodhisatta  is  extensively  developed 
in  the  book  of  the  550  Jatakas,  or  Birth  Stories,  which 
recount   the   edifying   histories   of   Gautama's   previous 
existence  as  man,  animal,  or  fairy.     When  the  Brahman 
Sumedha  rejects  the  thought  of  crossing  alone  the  sea  of 
Becoming  and  registers  the  vow  to  attain  omniscience,  in 
order  that  he  may  also  convey  other  men,  and  gods,  across 
that  sea,  he  speaks  already  in  the  sense  of  the  Mahayana. 
Associated  with  the  doctrine  of  the  Bodhisatta  is  that  of 
previous  Buddhas,  who  are  duly  named  in  the  Mahdpaddna 
Siitta,  and  the  details  of  their  lives  set  forth  according  to 
a  set  formula  ;  their  number  is  three  or  seven  or,  according 
to  a  later  account,  twenty-four.     Of  future  Buddhas,  only 
the  Bodhisatta   Metteya,   the  personification   of  Loving- 
kindness,  is  mentioned,  and  that  in  the  Milinda  Panha^ 
which  is  a  little  later  than  the  canonical  scriptures. 
It  is  possible  that  the  three  former  Buddhas  who  are  said 
to  have  appeared  in  the  present  age,  but  very  long  ago, 
represent  a  memory  of  actual  teachers  before  Buddha :  in 

p  225 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

any  case,  the  theory  that  all  Buddhas  teach  the  same 
doctrine  is  of  considerable  interest,  and  it  corresponds  to 
the  Brahman  view  of  the  eternity  of  the  Vedas,  which  are 
heard  rather  than  invented  by  successive  teachers.  This 
belief  in  the  timeless  unity  of  truth,  which  is  shared  by 
Indians  of  divers  persuasions,  is  of  much  significance. 
Without  referring  in  greater  detail  to  the  mythological 
and  maeical  elements  which  enter  into  even  the  earliest 
Buddha  literature,  it  will  suffice  to  point  out  that  this 
literature  already  includes,  as  partly  indicated  above,  the 
germs  of  most  of  those  doctrines  which  are  elaborated  to 
a  far  greater  extent  in  the  dogmas  of  the  '  Great  Raft.' 
The  development  of  that  religion  from  the  basis  of  early 
Buddhist  psychology  is  nearly  parallel  to  the  development 
of  mediaeval  Hinduism  on  the  basis  of  the  pure  idealism 
of  the  Upanishads. 

//.  SYSTEM  OF  THE  MAHAYANA 

Le  plus  saint,  c'est  le  plus  amant. — Ruysbroeck 

The  Mahayana  or  Great  Vessel  is  so-called  by  its  adherents, 
in  contradistinction  to  the  Hinayana  or  little  Vessel  of 
primitive  Buddhism,  because  the  former  offers  to  all 
beings  in  all  worlds  salvation  by  faith  and  love  as  well  as 
by  knowledge,  while  the  latter  only  avails  to  convey  over 
the  rough  sea  of  Becoming  to  the  farther  shore  of  Nibbana 
those  few  strong  souls  who  require  no  external  spiritual 
aid  nor  the  consolation  of  Worship.  The  Hinayana, 
like  the  '  unshown  way '  of  those  who  seek  the  '  nii-giina 
Brahman,^  is  exceeding  hard;^  whereas  the  burden  of  the 

^  In  the  words  of  Behmen  {Si/persensjial  Life,  Dialogue  2):  Biit,  alas^ 
how  hard  it  is  for  the  Will  to  sink  into  nothing,  to  attract  nothing,  to 
imagine  nothing. 
226 


System  of  the  Mahayana 

Mahayana  is  light,  and  does  not  require  that  a  man  should 
immediately  renounce  the  world  and  all  the  affections  of 
humanity.  The  manifestation  of  the  Body  of  the  Law, 
says  the  Mahayana,  is  adapted  to  the  various  needs  of  the 
children  of  the  Buddha;  whereas  the  Hinayana  is  only  of 
avail  to  those  who  have  left  their  spiritual  childhood  far 
behind  them.  The  Hinayana  emphasizes  the  necessity  of 
saving  knowledge,  and  aims  at  the  salvation  of  the 
individual,  and  refuses  to  develop  the  mystery  of  Nibbana 
in  a  positive  sense;  the  Mahayana  lays  as  much  or  greater 
stress  on  love,  and  aims  at  the  salvation  of  every  sentient 
being,  and  finds  in  Nirvana  the  One  Reality,  which  is 
*  Void '  only  in  the  sense  that  it  is  free  from  the  limitations 
of  every  phase  of  the  limited  or  contingent  experience  of 
which  we  have  empirical  knowledge.  The  Buddhists  of 
the  primitive  school,  on  the  other  hand,  naturally  do  not 
accept  the  name  of  the  '  Lesser  Vessel,'  and  as  true 
Protestants  they  raise  objection  to  the  theological  and 
aesthetic  accommodation  of  the  true  doctrine  to  the  neces- 
sities of  human  nature. 

Opinions  thus  differ  as  to  whether  we  may  regard  the 
Mahayana  as  a  development  or  a  degeneration.  Even  the 
professed  exponents  of  the  Hinayana  have  their  doubts. 
Thus  in  one  place  Professor  Rhys  Davids  speaks  of  the 
Bodhisattva  doctrine  as  the  dlrana-w&^d  which  "  drove  out 
the  doctrine  of  the  Ariyan  path,"  and  the  weed  "is  not 
attractive :  "  ^  while  in  another,  Mrs  Rhys  Davids  writes  of 
the  cool  detachment  of  the  Arahat,  that  perhaps  "  a  yet  more 
saintly  Sariputta  would  have  aspired  yet  further,  even  to 
an  infinite  series  of  rebirths,  wherein  he  mi^ht,  with  ever- 
growing  power  and  self-devotion,  work  for  the  furtherance 
of  the  religious  evolution  of  his  fellows,"  adding  that 
1  Dialogues  of  the  Buddha,  ii,  p.  i. 

227 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

"social  and  religious  ideals  evolve  out  of,  yea,  and  even 
beyond  the  finished  work  and  time-straitened  vision  of 
the  Arahants  of  old."  ^  Perhaps  we  need  not  determine 
the  relative  value  of  either  school :  the  way  of  knowledge 
will  ever  appeal  to  some,  and  the  way  of  love  and  action 
to  others,  and  the  latter  the  majority.  Those  who  are 
saved  by  knowledge  stand  apart  from  the  world  and  its 
hopes  and  fears,  offering  to  the  world  only  that  knowledge 
which  shall  enable  others  to  stand  aside  in  the  same  way : 
those  others  who  are  moved  by  their  love  and  wisdom  to 
perpetual  activity — in  whom  the  will  to  life  is  dead,  but 
the  will  to  power  yet  survives  in  its  noblest  and  most 
impersonal  forms — attain  at  last  the  same  goal,  and  in  the 
meanwhile  effect  a  reconciliation  of  religion  with  the  world, 
and  the  union  of  renunciation  with  action. 
The  development  of  the  Mahayana  is  in  fact  the  over- 
flowing of  Buddhism  from  the  limits  of  the  Order  into 
the  life  of  the  world;  into  whatever  devious  channels 
Buddhism  may  have  ultimately  descended,  are  we  to  say 
that  that  identification  with  the  life  of  the  world,  with  all 
its  consequences  in  ethic  and  aesthetic,  was  a  misfortune? 
Few  who  are  acquainted  with  the  history  of  Asiatic  culture 
would  maintain  any  such  thesis. 

Mahayanists  do  not  hesitate  to  describe  the  Hinayana 
ideal  as  selfish ;  and  we  have  indicated  in  several  places  to 
what  extent  it  must  in  any  case  be  called  narrow.  But  the 
Mahayanists — not  to  speak  of  Christian  critics  of  the 
Hinayana — do  not  sufficiently  realize  that  a  selfish  being 
could  not  possibly  become  an  Arahat,  who  must  be  free 
from  even  the  conception  of  an  ego,  and  still  more  from 
every  form  of  ego-assertion.  The  selfishness  of  the  would- 
be  Arahat  is  more  apparent  than  real.     The  ideal  of  self- 

^  Psalms  of  tJie  Brethren^  p.  xlviii. 
228 


System  of  the  Mahayana 

culture  is  not  opposed  to  that  of  self-sacrifice :  in  any  per- 
fectly harmonious  development  these  seemingly  opposite 
tendencies  are  reconciled.  To  achieve  this  reconciliation, 
to  combine  renunciation  with  growth,  knowledge  with 
love,  stillness  with  activity,  is  the  problem  of  all  ethics. 
Curiously  enough,  though  its  solution  has  often  been 
attempted  by  oriental  religions,  it  has  never  been  so  clearly 
enunciated  in  the  west  as  by  the  'irreligious'  Nietzsche — 
the  latest  of  the  mystics — whose  ideal  of  the  Superman 
combines  the  Will  to  Power  [cf.  p7'a7iidhdna)  with  the 
Bestowing  Virtue  {cf.  ka7  7ina). 

If  the  ideal  of  the  Private  Buddha  seems  to  be  a  selfish 
one,  we  may  reply  that  the  Great  Man  can  render  to  his 
fellows  no  higher  service  than  to  realize  the  highest 
possible  state  of  his  being.  From  the  Unity  of  life  we 
cannot  but  deduce  the  identity  of  (true)  self-interest  with  the 
(true)  interest  of  others.  While  therefore  the  Mahayanists 
may  justly  claim  that  their  system  is  indeed  a  greater 
vessel  of  salvation  in  the  sense  of  greater  convenience,  or 
better  adaptation  to  the  needs  of  a  majority  of  voyagers, 
they  cannot  on  the  other  hand  justly  accuse  the  captain 
and  the  crew  of  the  smaller  ship  of  selfishness.  Those 
who  seek  to  the  farther  shore  may  select  the  means  best 
suited  to  their  own  needs :  the  final  goal  is  one  and  the 
same. 

The  most  essential  part  of  the  Mahayana  is  its  emphasis 
on  the  Bodhisattva  ideal,  which  replaces  that  of 
Arahatta,  or  ranks  before  it.  Whereas  the  Arahat 
strives  most  earnestly  for  Nirvana,  the  Bodhisattva  as 
firmly  refuses  to  accept  the  final  release.  "  Forasmuch 
as  there  is  the  will  that  all  sentient  beines  should  be  alto- 
gether  made  free,  I  will  not  forsake  my  fellow  creatures."  ^ 
^  Avatamsaka  Sutra. 

229 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

The  Bodhisattva  is  he  in  whom  the  Bodhicitta  or  heart  of 
wisdom  is  fully  expanded.  In  a  sense,  we  are  all  Bodhi- 
sattvas,  and  indeed  all  Buddhas,  only  that  in  us  by  reason 
of  ignorance  and  imperfection  in  love  the  glory  of  the 
Bodhi-heart  is  not  yet  made  manifest.  But  those  are 
specially  called  Bodhisattvas  who  with  specific  determina- 
tion dedicate  all  the  activities  of  their  future  and  present 
lives  to  the  task  of  saving  the  world.  They  do  not  merely 
contemplate,  but  feel,  all  the  sorrow  of  the  world,  and 
because  of  their  love  they  cannot  be  idle,  but  expend 
their  virtue  with  supernatural  generosity.  It  is  said  of 
Gautama  Buddha,  for  example,  that  there  is  no  spot  on 
earth  where  he  has  not  in  some  past  life  sacrificed  his  life 
for  the  sake  of  others,  while  the  whole  story  of  his  last 
incarnation  related  in  the  Vessa7itara  Jdtaka  relates  the 
same  unstinting  generosity,  which  does  not  shrink  even 
from  the  giving  away  of  wife  and  children.  But  Buddha- 
hood  once  attained,  according  to  the  old  school,  it  remains 
for  others  to  work  out  their  salvation  alone :  "  Be  ye 
lamps  unto  yourselves,"  in  the  last  words  of  Gautama. 
According  to  the  Mahayana,  however,  even  the  attainment 
of  Buddhahood  does  not  involve  indifference  to  the  sorrow 
of  the  world ;  the  work  of  salvation  is  perpetually  carried 
on  by  the  Bodhisattva  emanations  of  the  supreme  Buddhas, 
just  as  the  work  of  the  Father  is  done  by  Jesus. 
The  Bodhisattvas  are  specially  distinguished  from  the 
Sravakas  (Arahats)  and  Pacceka-Buddhas  or  '  Private 
Buddhas,'  who  have  become  followers  of  the  Buddha 
'  for  the  sake  of  their  own  complete  Nirvana ' :  ^  for  the 
^  Hindus  would  express  this  by  saying  that  Sravakas  and  Pacceka- 
Buddhas  choose  the  path  of  Immediate  Salvation  :  Bodhisattvas,  that 
of  Ultimate  Salvation.  '  The  deferred  path  of  Liberation  is  the  path 
of  all  Bhaktas.  It  is  the  path  of  compassion  or  service.' — P.  N.  Sinha, 
Commentary  on  the  Bhdgavata  Purdna,  p.  359. 
230 


Plate  R  230 

AVALOKllliSVARA    [Bodhisattva) 

Nepalese  copper  gilt,  gth-ioth  century  a.d. 

Author's  Collection 


System  of  the  Mahayana 

Bodhisattvas  enter  upon  their  course  "  out  of  compassion 
to  the  world,  for  the  benefit,  weal,  and  happiness  of  the 
world  at  large,  both  gods  and  men,  for  the  sake  of  the 
complete  Nirvana  of  all  beings.  .  .  .  Therefore  they  are 
called  Bodhisattva  Mahasattva."  ^ 

A  doctrine  specially  associated  with  the  Bodhisattva 
ideal  is  that  of  the  parivarta  or  turning  over  of  ethical 
merit  to  the  advantage  of  others,  which  amounts  very  / 
nearly  to  the  doctrine  of  vicarious  atonement.  Whereas 
in  early  Buddhism  it  is  emphasized  that  each  life  is 
entirely  separate  from  every  other  (also  a  Jaina  doctrine, 
and  no  doubt  derived  from  the  Samkhya  conception 
of  a  plurality  of  Purushas),  the  Mahayana  insists  on 
the  interdependence  and  even  the  identity  of  all  life ;  and 
this  position  affords  a  logical  basis  for  the  view  that 
the  merit  acquired  by  one  may  be  devoted  to  the  good  of 
others.  This  is  a  peculiarly  amiable  feature  in  late 
Buddhism;  we  find,  for  example,  that  whoever  accom- 
plishes a  good  deed,  such  as  a  work  of  charity  or  a 
pilgrimage,  adds  the  prayer  that  the  merit  may  be  shared 
by  all  sentient  beings. 

It  will  be  seen  that  the  doctrine  of  vicarious  merit  involves 
the  interpretation  of  karma  in  the  first  and  more  general 
sense  referred  to  on  page  io8.  No  man  lives  to  himself 
alone,  but  we  may  regard  the  whole  creation  (which 
groaneth  and  travailleth  together)  as  one  life  and  there- 
fore as  sharing  a  common  karma,  to  which  every  indi- 
vidual contributes  for  good  or  ill.  Notwithstanding  from 
the  individualist  standpoint  it  may  appear  both  false 
and  dangerous  to  limit  the  doctrine  of  purely  individual 
responsibility,  it  is  not  so  in  fact ;  the  good  or  evil  of  the 
individual   also  affects   others,  and  rather  increases  his 

^  Saddharmapundartka  Sutra. 

231 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

responsibility  than  lightens  it.     There  is  no  mystery  in 
karma;  it  is  simply  a  phase  of  the  law  of  cause  and  effect, 
and   it  holds  as   much  for  groups  and   communities  as 
for  individuals,  if  indeed,  individuals  are  not  also  com- 
munities.    Let  us  take  a  very  simple  example :  if  a  single 
wise  statesman  by  a  generous  treatment  of  a  conquered 
race  secures  their  loyalty  at  some  future  time  of  stress, 
that   karma  accrues    not  merely  to  himself  but  to   the 
state  for  ever;    and  other  members  of  the  community, 
even    those    who    would    have    dealt    ungenerously    in 
the  first  instance,  benefit  undeniably  from  the  vicarious 
merit  of  a  single  man.     Just  in  this  sense  it  is  possible 
for  hero-souls  to  bear  or  to  share  the  burden  of  the  karma 
of  humanity.     By  this  conception  of  the  taking  on  of 
sin,  or  rather,  the  passing  on  of  merit,  the  Mahayana  has 
definitely  emerged  from  the  formula  of  psychic  isolation 
which  the  Hinayana  inherits  from  the  Samkhya. 
In  other  words,  the  great  difficulty  of  imagining  a  par- 
ticular karma  passing  from  individual  to  individual,  with- 
out the  persistence  even  of  a  subtle   body,   is  avoided 
by  the  conception  of  human  beings,   or   indeed   of   the 
whole  universe,  as  constituting  one  life  or  self.     Thus 
it   is   from   our   ancestors   that  we   receive  our  karma, 
and  not  merely  from    'our  own'   past   existences;    and 
whatsoever  karma  we  create  will  be  inherited  by  humanity 
for  ever. 

The  following  account  of  karma  is  given  by  a  modern 
Mahayanist : 

"The  aggregate  actions  of  all  sentient  beings  give  birth 
to  the  varieties  of  mountains,  rivers,  countries,  etc.  They 
are  caused  by  aggregate  actions,  and  so  are  called  aggregate 
fruits.  Our  present  life  is  the  reflection  of  past  actions. 
Men  consider  these  reflections  as  their  real  selves.  Their 
232 


System  of  the  Mahayana 

eyes,  noses,  ears,  tongues,  and  bodies — as  well  as  their 
gardens,  woods,  farms,  residences,  servants,  and  maids — 
men  imagine  to  be  their  own  possessions ;  but,  in  fact, 
they  are  only  results  endlessly  produced  by  innumerable 
actions.  In  tracing  everything  back  to  the  ultimate 
limits  of  the  past,  we  cannot  find  a  beginning:  hence 
it  is  said  that  death  and  birth  have  no  beginning.  Again, 
when  seeking  the  ultimate  limit  of  the  future,  we  cannot 
find  the  end."  ^ 

It  may  be  pointed  out  here  just  how  far  the  doctrine 
of  karma  is  and  is  not  fatalistic.     It  is  fatalistic  in  the 
sense  that  the  present  is  always  determined  by  the  past ; 
but   the    future   remains   free.     Every   action   we    make 
depends  on  what  we  have  come  to  be  at  the  time.     But 
what  we  are  coming  to  be  at  any  time  depends  on  the 
direction  of  the  will.     The  karmic   law   merely   asserts 
that   this   direction   cannot  be  altered   suddenly  by  the 
forgiveness  of   sins,   but  must  be  changed  by  our  own 
efforts.     If  ever  the  turning  of  the  will  appears  to  take 
place  suddenly,  that  can  only  be  due  to  the  fruition  of 
long  accumulated  latent  tendencies  (we  constantly  read 
that  Gautama  preached  the  Law  to  such  and  such  a  one, 
forasmuch  as  he  saw  that   his  or  her  intelligence  was 
'fully  ripe,'  and  in  these  cases  conversion  immediately 
results).     Thus,  if  we  are  not  directly  responsible  for  our 
present  actions,  we  are  always  responsible  for  our  character, 
on  which   future  actions   depend.     On   this  account  the 
object  of  Buddhist  moral  discipline  is  always  the  accumu- 
lation of  merit  [pimya),  that  is  to  say  the  heaping  up 
of  grace,  or  simply  the  constant  improvement  of  character. 
The  Mahayanist  doctors    recognize  ten  stations   in  the 
spiritual  evolution  of   the  Bodhisattva,  beginning  with 

^  S.  Kuroda,  Outlines  of  the  Mahayana  Philosophy. 

233 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

the  first  awakening  of  the  Wisdom-heart  (Bodhicitta)  in 
the  warmth  of  compassion  (karuna)  and  the  light  of 
divine  knowledge  (prajna).  These  stations  are  those 
of  'joy,'  'purity,'  'effulgence,'  'burning,'  'hard  to 
achieve,'  '  showing  the  face,'  '  going  afar  off,'  '  not 
moving  to  and  fro,'  '  good  intelligence,'  and  '  dharma- 
cloud.'  It  is  in  the  first  station  that  the  Bodhisattva 
makes  those  pregnant  resolutions  (pranidhana)  which 
determine  the  course  of  his  future  lives.  An  example  of 
such  a  vow  is  the  resolution  of  Avalokitesvara  not  to 
accept  salvation  until  the  least  particle  of  dust  shall  have 
attained  to  Buddahood  before  him. 

It  may  be  mentioned  that  the  course  {cariyd)  of  the 
Bodhisattva  has  this  advantage,  that  he  never  comes  to 
birth  in  any  purgatory,  nor  in  any  unfavourable  condition 
on  earth.  Nor  is  the  Bodhisattva  required  to  cultivate  a 
disgust  for  the  conditions  of  life ;  he  does  not  practise 
a  meditation  on  Foul  Things,  like  the  aspirant  for 
Arahatta.  The  Bodhisattva  simply  recognizes  that  the 
conditions  of  life  have  come  to  be  what  they  are,  that  it 
is  in  the  nature  (tattva,  bhutathd,  suchness)  of  things  to 
be  so,  and  he  takes  them  accordingly  for  what  they  are 
worth.  This  position  is  nowhere  more  tersely  summed 
up  than  in  the  well-known  Japanese  verselet — 

Granted  this  dewdrop  world  be  but  a  dewdrop  world, 
This  granted,  yet  .  .  . 

Thus  the  new  Buddhist  law  was  in  no  way  puritanical,  and 
did  not  inculcate  an  absolute  detachment.  Pleasure 
indeed  is  not  to  be  sought  as  an  end  in  itself,  but  it  need 
not  be  rejected  as  it  arises  incidentally.  The  Bodhisattva 
shares  in  the  life  of  the  world ;  for  example,  he  has  a 
wife,  that  his  supernatural  generosity  may  be  seen  in  the 

234 


System  of  the  Mahay  ana 

gift  of  wife  and  children,  and  for  the  same  reason  he  may 
be  the  possessor  of  power  and  wealth.  If  by  reason  of 
attachment  and  this  association  with  the  world  some 
venial  sins  are  unavoidably  committed,  that  is  of  little 
consequence,  and  such  sins  are  wiped  away  in  the  love  of 
others :  the  cardinal  sins  of  hatred  and  self-thinking 
cannot  be  imagined  in  him  in  whom  the  heart  of  wisdom 
has  been  awakened.  It  must  not,  however,  be  supposed 
that  the  Mahayana  in  any  way  relaxes  the  rule  of  the 
Order ;  and  even  in  the  matter  of  the  remission  of  sins  of 
the  laity  it  is  only  minor  and  inevitable  shortcomings 
that  are  considered,  and  not  deliberate  deeds  of  evil. 
And  if  the  Mahayana  doctors  preach  the  futility  of 
remorse  and  discouragement,  on  the  other  hand  they  are 
by  no  means  quietists,  but  advocate  a  mysticism  fully  as 
practical  as  that  of  Ruysbroeck. 

The  idea  of  the  Bodhisattva  corresponds  to  that  of  the 
Hero,  the  Superman,  the  Saviour  and  the  Avatar  of 
other  systems.  In  this  connexion  it  is  interesting  to 
note  that  legitimate  pride — the  will  to  power,  conjoined 
with  the  bestowing  virtue — is  by  no  means  alien  to  the 
Bodhisattva  character,  but  on  the  contrary,  "  In  respect 
of  three  things  may  pride  be  borne — man's  works,  his 
temptations,  and  his  power,"  and  the  exposition  follows  : 
"  The  pride  of  works  lies  in  the  thought  '  for  me  alone  is 
the  task.'  ^  This  world,  enslaved  by  passion,  is  powerless 
to  accomplish  its  own  weal ;  then  must  I  do  it  for  them, 
for  I  am  not  impotent  like  them.  Shall  another  do  a 
lowly  task  while  I  am  standing  by  ?  If  I  in  my  pride 
will   not  do  it,  better  it   is    that   my  pride  perish.  .  .  . 

1  Cf.  Blake  : 

But  when  Jesus  was  crucified, 

Then  was  perfected  His  galling  pride. 

235 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Then  with  firm  spirit  I  will  undo  the  occasions  of  un- 
doing ;  if  I  should  be  conquered  by  them,  my  ambition 
to  conquer  the  threefold  world  would  be  a  jest.  I  will 
conquer  all ;  none  shall  conquer  me.  This  is  the  pride 
that  I  will  bear,  for  I  am  the  son  of  the  Conqueror  Lions  !  ^ 
.  .  .  Surrounded  by  the  troop  of  the  passions  man  should 
become  a  thousand  times  prouder,  and  be  as  unconquer- 
able to  their  hordes  as  a  lion  to  flocks  of  deer  ...  so, 
into  whatever  straits  he  may  come,  he  will  not  fall  into 
the  power  of  the  Passions.  He  will  utterly  give  himself 
over  to  whatever  task  arrives,  greedy  for  the  work  .  .  . 
how  can  he  whose  happiness  is  work  itself  be  happy  in 
doing  no  work  ?  He  will  hold  himself  in  readiness,  so 
that  even  before  a  task  comes  to  him  he  is  prepared  to 
turn  to  every  course.  As  the  seed  of  the  cotton-tree  is 
swayed  at  the  coming  and  going  of  the  wind,  so  will  he 
be  obedient  to  his  resolution ;  and  thus  divine  power  is 
gained."  ^ 

We  may  remark  here  an  important  distinction  between 
the  Mahayana  and  the  Hinayana  lies  in  the  fact  that  the 
former  is  essentially  mythical  and  unhistorical ;  the 
believer  is,  indeed,  warned — precisely  as  the  worshipper 
of  Krishna  is  warned  in  the  Vaishnava  scriptures  that 
the  Krishna  Lila  is  not  a  history,  but  a  process  for  ever 
unfolded  in  the  heart  of  man — that  matters  of  historical 
fact  are  without  religious  significance.  On  this  account, 
notwithstanding  its  more  popular  form,  the  Mahayana 
has   been  justly   called    '  more   philosophical '    than   the 

^  Buddha  is  often  spoken  of  as  Conqueror  (Jina — a  term  more  familiar 

in  connexion  with  the  followers  of  Mahavira,  the  '  Jainas ')  and  as  Lion 

(Sakyasinha',  the  lion  of  the  Sakya  race). 

2  From   the  BodhicarydvatiXra  of  Shanti   Deva,  translated  by  L.  D. 

Barnett,  1902. 

236 


Plati;  S  236 

MAITREYA   {Dodhi saliva) 

Ceylonese  bronze,  6th  century  a.d.  or  later 

Colombo  Mu'cutn 


Mahayana  Theology 

Hinayana,  "  because  under  the  forms  of  religious  or 
mystical  imagery  it  expresses  the  universal,  whereas  the 
Hinayana  cannot  set  itself  free  from  the  domination  of 
the  historical  fact."  ^ 

An  important  dogmatic  distinction,  the  meaning  of  which 
will  be  made  clear  as  we  proceed,  is  also  found  in  the 
new  interpretation  of  the  Three  Refuges.  In  the  Hina- 
yana these  are  the  Buddha,  the  Dhamma,  and  the  Sangha ; 
in  the  Mahayana  they  are  the  Buddhas,  the  Sons  of  the 
Buddhas  (Bodhisattvas  both  in  the  special  and  in  the 
wider  sense),  and  the  Dharmakaya. 

Mahayana  Theology 

The  Mahayana  is  thus  distinguished  by  its  mystical 
Buddha  theology.  This  must  not  be  confused  with  the 
popular  and  quite  realistic  theology  of  Sakka  and  Brahma 
recognized  in  early  Buddhism.  The  Mahayana  Buddha 
theology,  as  remarked  by  Rhys  Davids,  "  is  the  greatest 
possible  contradiction  to  the  Agnostic  Atheism,"  which 
is  the  characteristic  of  Gautama's  system  of  philosophy. 
But  this  opposition  is  simply  the  inevitable  contrast  of 
religion  and  philosophy,  relative  and  absolute  truth,  and 
those  who  are  interested  in  the  science  of  theology, 
or  are  touched  by  art,  will  not  be  likely  to  agree  in 
denouncing  the  Buddha  gods  as  the  inventions  "of  a 
sickly  scholasticism,  hollow  abstractions  without  life  or 
reality ":2  in  this  contingent  world  we  live  every  day  by 

1  R.  F.  Johnston,  Buddhist  China,  p.  114.  Most  likely  Christianity 
also  in  the  near  future  will  succeed  in  breaking  the  '  entangling  alliance  ' 
of  religion  and  history,  from  which  bhe  mystics  have  already  long 
emerged.  There  cannot  be  an  absolute  truth  which  is  not  accessible 
to  direct  experience. 

2  T.   W.    Rhys    Davids,    Buddhism  (S.P.C.K.,  an    early   edition,    pp. 

206,  207). 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

relative  truths,  and  for  all  those  who  do  not  wish  to  avoid 
the  world  of  Becoming  at  the  earliest  possible  moment 
these  relative  truths  are  far  from  lacking  in  life  or  reality. 
The  Mahayana  as  a  theistic  faith  is  so  only  to  the  same 
;( extent  as  the  Vedanta,  that  is  to  say  it  has  an  esoteric 
aspect  which  speaks  in  negative  terms  of  a  Suchness  and 

"'  a  Void  which  cannot  be  known,  while  on  the  other  it  has 
an  exoteric  and  more  elaborate  part  in  which  the  Absolute 
is  seen  through  the  glass  of  time  and  space,  contracted 
and  identified  into  variety.    This  development  appears  in 

V   the  doctrine  of  the  Trikaya,  the  Three  Bodies  of  Buddha. 

'  These  three  are  (i)  the  Dharmakaya^  or  Essence-body; 
(2)  its  heavenly  manifestation  in  the  Sambkogakdya,  or 
Body  of  Bliss ;  and  (3)  the  emanation,  transformation,  or 
projection  thereof,  called  Nirmdnakdya,  apparent  as  the 
visible  individual  Buddha  on  earth.  This  is  a  system 
which  hardly  differs  from  what  is  implied  in  the  Christian 
doctrine  of  Incarnation,  and  it  is  not  unlikely  that 
both  Christianity  and  the  Mahayana  are  inheritors  from 
common  Gnostic  sources. 

Thus  the  Dharmakaya  may  be  compared  to  the  Father; 
the  Sambhogakaya  to  the  figure  of  Christ  in  glory ;  the 
Nirmanakaya  to  the  visible  Jesus  who  announces  in 
human  speech  that  '  I  and  my  Father  are  One.'  Or  again 
with  the  Vedanta :  the  Dharmakaya  is  the  Brahman, 
timeless  and  unconditioned ;  the  Sambhogakaya  is  realized 
in  the  forms  of  Isvara ;  the  Nirmanakaya  in  every  avatar. 
The  essence  of  all  things,  the  one  reality  of  which  their 
fleeting  shapes  remind  us,  is  the  Dharmakaya.  The 
Dharmakaya  is  not  a  personal  being  who  reveals 
himself  to  us  in  a  single  incarnation,  but  it  is  the  all- 
pervading  and  traceless  ground  of  the  soul,  which  does 
not  in  fact  suffer  any  modification  but  appears  to  us  to 
238 


Mahay  ana  Theology- 
assume  a  variety  of  forms  :  we  read  that  though  the 
Buddha  (a  term  which  we  must  here  understand  as 
impersonal)  does  not  depart  from  his  seat  in  the  tower 
(state  of  Dharmakaya),  yet  he  may  assume  all  and 
every  form,  whether  of  a  Brahma,  a  god,  or  a  monk,  or 
a  physician,  or  a  tradesman,  or  an  artist ;  he  may  reveal 
himself  in  every  form  of  art  and  industry,  in  cities  or  in 
villages:  from  the  highest  heaven  to  the  lowest  hell, 
there  is  the  Dharmakaya,  in  which  all  sentient  beings 
are  one.  The  Dharmakaya  is  the  impersonal  ground  of 
Buddhahood  from  which  the  personal  will,  thought  and 
love  of  innumerable  Buddhas  and  Bodhisattvas  ever 
proceed  in  response  to  the  needs  of  those  in  whom  the 
perfect  nature  is  not  yet  realized.  In  some  of  the  later 
phases  of  the  Mahayana,  however,  the  Dharmakaya 
is  personified  as  Adi-Buddha  (sometimes  Vairocana)/ 
who  is  then  to  be  regarded  as  the  Supreme  Being,  above 
all  other  Buddhas,  and  whose  sakti  is  Prajnaparamita. 
Dharmakaya  is  commonly  translated  '  Body  of  the  Law,' 
but  it  must  not  be  interpreted  merely  as  equivalent  to  the 
sum  of  the  scriptures.  The  fathomless  being  of  Buddha- 
hood, according  to  the  Mahayana,  is  something  more 
than  the  immortality  of  the  individual  in  his  doctrine; 
we  must  understand  Dharma  here  as  the  Orn  or  Logos. 
To  understand  the  meaning  of  Dharmakaya  more  fully 
we  must  take  into  account  also  its  synonyms,  for 
example,  Svabhdvakdya^  or  'own-nature  body'  (like  the 
Brahmanical  svarnpa,  'own-form'),  Taitva,  or  'such- 
ness,'  Sunya,  'the  void'  or  'abyss,'  Nh^jdna,  'the  eternal 
liberty,'  Saniddhikdya,  '  rapture-body,'  Bociki,  '  wisdom,' 
Prajhd,  'divine  knowledge,'  Tathdgata-garbha,  'womb 
of  those  who  attain.' 

Some  of  these  terms  must  be  further  considered.     The 

239 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

'Void,'  for  example,  is  not  by  any  means  'naught,'  but 
simply  the  absence  of  characteristics;  the  Dharmakaya  is 
'void'  just  as  the  Brahman  is  'not  so,  not  so,'  and  as 
Duns  Scotus  says  that  God  'is  not  improperly  called 
Nothing.'  It  is  precisely  from  the  undetermined  that 
evolution  is  imaginable;  where  there  is  nothing  there  is 
room  for  everything.  The  voidness  of  things  is  the  non- 
existence of  things-in-themselves,  on  which  so  much  stress 
is  rightly  laid  in  early  Buddhism.  The  phrase  '  Own- 
nature  body '  emphasizes  the  thought  '  I  am  that  I  am.' 
Bodhi  is  the  'wisdom-heart*  which  awakens  with  the 
determination  to  become  a  Buddha.  '  Suchness '  may  be 
taken  to  mean  inevitability,  or  spontaneity,  that  the 
highest  cause  of  everything  must  needs  be  in  the  thing 
itself. 

A  special  meaning  attaches  to  the  name  Prajna  or  Prajna- 
paramita,  viz.  Supreme  Knowledge,  Reason,  Understand- 
ing, Sophia ;  for  the  name  Prajnaparamita  is  applied 
to  the  chief  of  the  Mahayana  scriptures,  or  a  group  of 
scriptures,  signifying  the  divine  knowledge  which  they 
embody,  and  she  is  also  personified  as  a  feminine  divinity. 
As  one  with  the  Dharmakaya  she  is  the  knowledge  of  the 
Abyss,  the  Buddhahood  in  which  the  individual  Bodhi- 
sattva  passes  away.  But  as  Reason  or  Understanding  she 
is  Tathagata-garbha,  the  Womb  or  Mother  of  the  Buddhas, 
and  the  source  from  which  issues  the  variety  of  things, 
both  mental  and  physical.^  In  Hindu  phraseology,  she  is 
the  Sakti  of  the  Supreme,  the  power  of  manifestation 
inseparable  from  that  which  Manifests  :  she  is  Devi,  Afdyd, 
or  Prakriti,    the  One  who  is  also  the  many.     "In  the 

1  Precisely  as  the  Zero  may  be  regarded  as  a  Womb,  being  the  sum  and 
source  of  an  infinite  series  of  plus  and  of  minus  quantities,  such  as  the 
Extremes  or  Pairs  of  opposites  of  the  relative  world. 
240 


Nirvana 

root  she  is  all-Brahman ;  in  the  stem  she  is  all-illusion;  in 
the  flower  she  is  all-world;  and  in  the  fruit  all-liberation" 
— {Ta7itra  Tattva)?- 

Nirvana 

The  Mahayana  doctrine  of  Nirvana  requires  somewhat 
lengthier  consideration.  We  have  seen  that  in  earlier 
Buddhism  Nibbana  meant  the  dying  out  of  the  fires  of 
passion,  resentment,  and  infatuation,  and  the  dissolution 
of  the  individual  personality,  but  what  more  or  less  than 
this  it  meant  metaphysically,  Gautama  would  not  say, 
and  he  plainly  condemns  speculation  as  unedifying. 
Mahayanists  however  do  not  hesitate  to  develop  a  far- 
reaching  idealism,  similar  to  that  of  the  Vedanta,  and 
logically  develop  the  early  Buddhism  phenomenalism 
into  a  complete  nihilism  which,  as  we  have  seen,  declares 

^  "  Nature  ariseth,"  says  Behmen,  "  in  the  outflown  word  of  the  divine 
perception  and  knowledge."  "The  wisdom  is  the  great  Mystery  of  the 
divine  nature ;  for  in  her  the  powers,  colours  and  virtues  are  made 
manifest ;  in  her  is  the  variation  of  the  power  and  the  virtue,  viz.  the 
understanding :  she  is  the  divine  understanding — that  is,  the  divine 
vision,  wherein  the  Unity  is  manifest  ...  in  which  the  images  of 
angels  and  souls  have  been  seen  from  eternity  .  .  .  therein  have  lain 
all  things  in  one  only  ground,  as  an  image  lieth  hid  in  a  piece  of  wood 
before  the  artificer  doth  carve  it  out  and  fashion  it"  {The  Clavis). 
"At  the  time  of  creation  Brahma,  Vishnu,  Mahesvara  and  other 
devas  are  born  of  the  body  of  that  beginningless  and  eternal  Kalika, 
and  at  the  time  of  dissolution  they  again  disappear  in  Her  "  {Nirvana 
Tantra).  Kalika  is  one  of  the  many  names  of  Devi,  Sakti,  Prakriti, 
Parvati,  Kali,  etc:  she  is  as  Uma,  the  "wisdom  that  hath  eaten  up 
my  mind  and  rid  me  of  the  sense  of  I  and  my "  (Tayumanavar) : 
"  who  with  the  absolute  inseparably  is  blended  as  flower  with  scent,  as 
sun  and  ray,  as  life  and  body  ...  her  children,  all  living  things  with 
ceaseless  bliss  ambrosial  nourishing  "  (Chidambara  Swami).  It  is  not 
without  significance  that  the  traditional  name  of  GauUima's  earthly 
mother  is  Maya. 

Q  241 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

that   the   whole   world   of   becoming   is   truly  void  and 
unreal. 

This  '  nihilism '  is  carried  to  its  farthest  extreme  in  works 
such  as  the  Prajiiapmnmitds'^  and  the  Vajracchedika 
Sutra  :  we  read,  for  example,  in  the  latter  work  : 
"And  again,  O  Subhuti,  a  gift  should  not  be  given  by 
a  Bodhisattva,  while  he  still  believes  in  the  reality  of 
objects ;  a  gift  should  not  be  given  by  him  while  he  yet 
believes  in  anything;  a  gift  should  not  be  given  by  him 
while  he  still  believes  in  form ;  a  gift  should  not  be  given 
by  him  while  he  still  believes  in  the  special  qualities  of 
sound,  smell,  taste,  and  touch.  .  .  .  And  why  ?  Because 
that  Bodhisattva,  O  Subhuti,  who  gives  a  gift,  without 
believing  in  anything,  the  measure  of  his  stock  of  merit 
is  not  easy  to  learn  ! " 

And  this  denial  of  entity  is  carried  to  the  logical  extreme 
of  denying  the  existence  of  scripture  : 
" '  Then  what  do  you  think,  O  Subhuti,  is  there  any 
doctrine  that  was  preached  by  the  Tathagata  ? '  Subhuti 
said  :  '  Not  so,  indeed,  O  Worshipful,  There  is  not  any- 
thing that  was  preached  by  the  Tathagata.' " 
Even  more  striking  is  the  famous  '  Middle  Path  of  Eight 
Noes'  of  Nagarjuna : 

"  There  is  no  production  {titpdda),  no  destruction  {jccckcda), 
no  annihilation  {nii^odka),  no  persistence  (sdsvata),  no  unity 
(ckdrtha)^  no  plurality  [ndndiika),  no  coming  in  {dgamand)^ 
and  no  going  forth  [nirgama)." 

This  view,  however,  is  not  properly  to  be  understood  as 
mere  nihilism ;  it  is  constantly  emphasized  that  things  of 

^  So  called  because  they  treat  at  length  of  the  Six  Perfections  {Para- 
mitas)  of  a  Bodhisattva,  and  the  last  of  these  in  particular.  The  Six 
Perfections  are  dana^  charity ;  sila,  mcH-ality  ;  khsdnti,  meekness ;  vltya, 
energy ;  dhydna,  meditation ;  and  prajnd,  wisdom. 

242 


Nagarjuna 

all  kinds  neither  exist  nor  do  not  exist.  We  may  under- 
stand this  '  middle  view '  in  either  of  two  ways :  as  the 
doctrine  that  of  that  which  is  other  than  phenomenal  there 
cannot  be  any  predication  of  existence  or  non-existence ; 
or  as  the  doctrine  that  from  the  standpoint  of  the  Abso- 
lute, things  have  no  existence,  while  from  the  standpoint 
of  the  Relative,  they  have  a  relative  being. 

Ndgdrjiina 

The  latter  view  is  distinctly  maintained  by  Nagarjuna, 
who,  like  Asvaghosa,  must  have  been  originally  a  Brah- 
man, and  lived  about  the  end  of  the  second  century 
A.D.  The  Middle  View  just  mentioned  is  set  forth  by 
him  in  the  Mddhyamika  siltras.  And  here  Nagarjuna 
gives  a  very  clear  answer  to  the  objection  that,  if  all  be 
'Void,'  then  the  Four  Ariyan  Truths,  the  Order  of 
Brethren,  and  Buddha  himself  must  be  considered  to  be 
and  have  been  unreal :  he  meets  the  difficulty  precisely  as 
Sankaracarya  meets  the  inconsistencies  of  the  Upanishads, 
by  saying  that  the  Buddha  speaks  of  two  truths,  the  one 
Truth  in  the  highest  sense,  absolute,  the  other  a  conven- 
tional and  relative  truth ;  he  who  does  not  comprehend 
the  distinction  of  these  cannot  understand  the  deeper 
import  of  the  teaching  of  the  Buddha.^ 

^  The  Western  student  will  of  course  meet  with  similar  contradictions 
in  the  Christian  gospels.  When  Christ  says  '  I  and  my  Father  are 
One,'  that  is  absolute  truth ;  when  He  speaks  upon  the  cross  as  if 
*  forsaken '  by  the  Father,  that  is  a  relative  truth  only.  When  He  says 
that  Mary  has  chosen  the  good  part  that  shall  not  be  taken  away  from 
her,  tliat  is  absolute;  but  when  He  commands  us  to  render  unto  Caesar 
the  things  that  are  Caesar's,  He  recognizes  again  the  realm  of  relativity. 
Here  also  it  may  be  said  that  he  who  does  not  recognize  the  dis- 
tinction of  relative  and  absolute  truth,  cannot  be  said  to  understand  the 
gospel  of  Christ. 

243 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

The  Mahayana  is  thus  far  from  affirming  that  Nirvana  is 
non-existence  pure  and  simple  ;  it  does  not  hesitate  to  say 
that  to  lose  our  life  is  to  save  it.  Nirvana  is  positive, 
or  positively  is ;  even  for  the  individual  it  cannot  be  said 
to  come  to  be,  or  to  be  entered  into  ;  it  merely  comes  to 
be  realized,  so  soon  as  that  ignorance  is  overcome  which 
obscures  the  knowledge  of  our  real  freedom,  which 
nothing  has  ever  infringed,  or  ever  can  infringe.  Nirvana 
is  that  which  is  not  lacking,  is  not  acquired,  is  not  inter- 
mittent, is  not  non-intermittent,  is  not  subject  to  destruction, 
and  is  not  created,  whose  sign  is  the  absence  of  signs,  which 
transcends  alike  non-Being  and  Being.  The  Mahayana 
Nirvana  cannot  be  better  explained  than  in  the  words  of  the 
great  Sufi  Al-Hujwirl — "  When  a  man  becomes  annihilated 
from  his  attributes  he  attains  to  perfect  subsistence,  he  is 
neither  near  nor  far,  neither  stranger  nor  intimate,  neither 
sober  nor  intoxicated,  neither  separated  nor  united;  he 
has  no  name,  or  sign,  or  brand  or  mark  "  {Kashf  al-Mah- 
jub).  It  is  the  realization  of  the  infinite  love  and  infinite 
wisdom,  where  knowledge  and  love  alike  proclaim  identity, 
that  constitute  this  Nirvana.  He  in  whom  the  Heart  of 
Wisdom  awakes,  however,  does  not  shrink  from  future 
rebirths,  "but  plunges  himself  into  the  ever  rushing 
current  of  Samsara  and  sacrifices  himself  to  save  his 
fellow  creatures  from  being  eternally  drowned  in  it."  He 
does  not  shrink  from  experience,  for  "just  as  the  lotus- 
flowers  do  not  grow  on  the  dry  land,  but  spring  from  the 
dark  and  watery  mud,  so  is  it  with  the  Heart  of  Wisdom, 
it  is  by  virtue  of  passion  and  sin  that  the  seeds  and 
sprouts  of  Buddhahood  are  able  to  grow,  and  not  from 
inaction  and  eternal  annihilation"  {Viniala-kwti  Stura). 
Mahayana  non-duality  culminates  in  the  magnificent 
paradox  of  the  identity  of  Nirvana  with  the  Samsara, 
244 


Mahayana  Mysticism 

the  non-distinction  of  the  unshown  and  the  shown — 
"  this  our  worldly  life  is  an  activity  of  Nirvana  itself,  not 
the  slightest  distinction  exists  between  them  " — (Nagar- 
juna,  Mddhyamika  Sdstrd).  This  view  is  expressed  with 
dramatic  force  in  the  aphorism,  '  Yas  klesas  so  bodhi,  yas 
sa7nsd7'as  tat  ni7vdnam,^  That  which  is  sin  is  also  Wisdom, 
the  realm  of  Becoming  is  also  Nirvana.^  One  and  the 
same  is  the  heart  of  Suchness  and  the  Heart  of  Birth-and- 
Death — 'what  is  immortal  and  what  is  mortal  are 
harmoniously  blended,  for  they  are  not  one,  nor  are  they 
separate ' — (Asvaghosha).  If  the  truth  is  not  to  be 
found  in  our  everyday  experience,  it  will  not  be  found  by 
searching  elsewhere. 

Mahdydna  mysticism 

It  scarcely  needs  to  be  pointed  out,  though  it  is  important 
to  realize,  that  this  is  the  ultimate  position  to  which  the 
mystics  of  every  age  and  inheritance  have  ultimately 
returned.  It  is  that  of  Blake  when  he  says  that  the  notion 
that  a  man  has  a  body  distinct  from  his  soul  must  be 
expunged,  and  that  it  is  only  because  the  doors  of  per- 
ception are  closed — by  ignorance — that  we  do  not  see  all 
things  as  they  are,  infinite.  It  is  that  of  Kablr  when  he 
says — "  in  the  home  is  reality  ;  the  home  helps  to  attain 
Him  who  is  real — I  behold  His  beauty  everywhere  "  ;  and 
when  he  asks,  "  What  is  the  difference  between  the  river 
and  its  waves ;  because  it  has  been  named  as  wave,  shall 

^  Mahayiina  monism  is  thus  totalistic :  it  affirms  the  unreality  of 
phenomena  as  such,  but  equally  affirms  their  significance.  This  life  is 
a  dream,  but  not  without  meaning.  There  is  no  sanction  for  this 
doctrine  in  early  Buddhism,  and  in  one  place  it  is  also  condemned  by 
Asvaghosha  as  born  of  the  devil  {The  Awakening  of  Faith,  trans. 
T.  Suzuki,  page  137);  perhaps  it  was  sometimes  misunderstood  in  the 
sense  of  '  Let  us  eat,  drink  and  be  merry,  for  to-morrow  we  die.' 

245 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

it  no  longer  be  considered  water  ?  "  It  is  that  of  Behmen 
when  he  says  the  Enochian  life  "  is  in  this  world,  yet  as 
it  were  swallowed  up  in  the  Mystery ;  but  it  is  not  altered 
in  itself,  it  is  only  withdrawn  from  our  sight  and  our 
sense  ;  for  if  our  eyes  were  opened,  we  should  see  it "  :  * 
Paradise  is  still  upon  earth,  and  only  because  of  our 
self-thinking  and  self-willing  we  do  not  see  and  hear 
God. 2  It  is  that  of  Whitman,  when  he  says  there  "  will 
never  be  any  more  perfection  than  there  is  now,  nor  any 
more  of  heaven  or  hell  than  there  is  now,"  and  inquires, 
*'  Why  should  I  wish  to  see  God  better  than  this  day  ?  " 

Strange  and  hard  that  paradox  true  I  give ^ 
Objects  gross  and  the  unseen  soul  ai^e  one. 

The  B^iddhas 

In  the  realm  of  absolute  {paramdrtha)  truth  we  may  speak 
only  of  the  Dharmakaya  as  void.  But  there  exists  also 
for  us  a  realm  of  relative  (sanivrittt)  truth  where  the 
Absolute  is  made  manifest  by  name  and  form ;  to  the 
dwellers  in  heaven  as  Sambhogakaya,  the  Body  of  Bliss, 
and  to  those  on  earth  as  Nirmanakaya,  the  Body  of 
Transformation. 

The  Sambhogakaya  is  the  Buddha  or  Buddhas  regarded 
as  God  in  heaven,  determined  by  name  and  form,  but 
omniscient,  omnipresent,  and  within  the  law  of  causality, 
omnipotent.     A  Buddha,  in  this  sense,  is  identical  with 

^   The  Forty  Questions. 

2  The  Stipersetisual  Life,  Dialogue  i .     Closely  parallel  to  a  passage  of 

the  Avatamsaka  Sutra  :  "  Child  of  Buddha,  there  is  not  even  one  living 

being  that  has  not  the  wisdom  of  the  Tathagata.     It  is  only  because  of 

their  vain  thought  and  affections  that  all  beings  are  not  conscious  of 

this." 

246 


The  Buddhas 

the  Brahmanical  '  Isvara,'  who  may  be  worshipped  under 
various  names  {e.g.  as  Vishnu  or  as  Siva),  the  worshipper 
attaining  the  heaven  ruled  by  him  whom  he  worships, 
though  he  knows  that  all  of  these  forms  are  [essentially 
one  and  the  same.  The  Mahayana  does  in  fact  multiply 
the  number  of  Buddhas  indefinitely  and  quite  logically, 
since  it  is  the  goal  of  every  individual  to  become  a 
Buddha.  The  nature  of  these  Buddhas  and  their  heavens 
will  be  best  realized  if  we  describe  the  most  popular  of  all, 
whose  name  is  Amitabha,  or  Amida. 
Amitabha  Buddha  rules  over  the  heaven  Sukhavati,  the 
Pure  Land  or  Western  Paradise.  With  him  are  associated 
the  historical  Gautama  as  earthly  emanation,  and  the 
Bodhisattva  Avalokitesvara  as  the  Saviour  (Plate  R). 
The  history  of  Amitabha  relates  that  many  long  ages  ago 
he  was  a  great  king,  who  left  his  throne  to  become  a 
wanderer,  and  he  attained  to  Bodhisattvahood  under  the 
guidance  of  the  Buddha,  that  is,  the  human  Buddha  then 
manifest ;  and  he  made  a  series  of  great  vows,  both  to 
become  a  Buddha  for  the  sake  of  saving  all  living  things, 
and  to  create  a  heaven  where  the  souls  of  the  blessed 
might  enjoy  an  age-long  state  of  happiness,  wisdom  and 
purity.  The  eighteenth  of  these  vows  is  the  chief  source 
of  the  popular  development  of  Amidism,  as  the  belief  of 
the  worshippers  of  Amitabha  is  styled.  This  vow  runs  as 
follows : 

"When  I  become  Buddha,  let  all  living  beings  of  the  ten 
regions  of  the  universe  maintain  a  confident  and  joyful 
faith  in  me ;  let  them  concentrate  their  longings  on  a  re- 
birth in  my  Paradise;  and  let  them  call  upon  my  name, 
though  it  be  only  ten  times  or  less :  then,  provided  only 
they  have  not  been  guilty  of  the  five  heinous  sins,  and 
have    not    slandered    or  vilified    the   true   religion,  the 

247 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

desire  of  such  beings  to  be  born  in  my  Paradise  will  be 
surely  fulfilled.     If  this  be  not  so,  may  I  never  receive 
the  perfect  enlightenment  of  Buddahood." 
This  is  a  fully  developed  doctrine  of  salvation  by  faith. 
The   parallel  with  some  forms    of   Christianity   is   very 
close.     Amitabha  both    'draws'    men    to   himself,    and 
'  sent '  his  son  Gautama  to  lead  men  to  him,  and  he  is 
ever  accessible  through  the  holy  spirit  of  Avalokitesvara. 
The  efficacy  of  death-bed  repentance  is  admitted ;  and  in 
any   case   the    dying    Amidist   should   contemplate   the 
glorious  figure  of  Amitabha,  just  as  the  dying  Catholic 
fixes  his  eyes  upon  the  Crucifix  upheld  by  the  priest  who 
administers  extreme   unction.     The  faithful   Amidist  is 
carried  immediately  to  heaven,  and  is  there  reborn  with  a 
spiritual  body  within  the  calyx  of  one  of  the  lotuses  of  the 
sacred  lake.     But  those  of  less  virtue  must   wait  long 
before  their  lotus  expands,  and  until  then  they  cannot  see 
God.     Those  who  have  committed  one  of  the  five  heinous 
sins,  and  yet  have  called  on  Amitabha's  name,  must  wait 
for  countless  ages,  a  period  of  time  beyond  conception, 
before  their  flowers  open;  just  as,  according  to  Behmen, 
those  souls  that  depart  from  the  body  "  without  Christ's 
body,  hanging  as  it  were  by  a  thread,"  must  wait  for  the 
last  day,  ere  they  come  forth.     Another  Mahayanist  idea, 
that  the  heaven  of  a  Buddha   is  coextensive  with  the 
universe,   is  also  to  be  found  in  Behmen,  who,  to  the 
question,  "  Must  not  the  soul  leave  the  body  at  death,  and 
go  either  to  heaven  or  hell?"  answers,  "There  is  verily 
no  such  kind  of  entering  in ;  forasmuch  as  heaven  and 
hell  are  everywhere,  being  universally  extended."    Strictly 
speaking,  the  heaven  of  Amitabha  cannot  be  identified 
with  Nirvana,  but  is  a  '  Buddha-field,'  where  preparation 
for  Nirvana  is  completed, 
248 


The  Buddhas 

The  following  Tabic  will  exhibit  the  complete  scheme  of 
Mahayana  Buddhology  : 

ADIBUDDHA 

\ 

i  \  \  i  i 

Central  East      »  South  West  North 

Buddhas:  II  I 

Vairocana       Akshobya    Ratnasambhava        Amiiabha      Amoghasiddha 

Bodhisattvas  : 

Samantabhadra    VajrapSni         RatnapSni        Avalokitesvara     Visvapini 


or 

Earthly 

PadmapSni 

Buddhas  : 

1 

Kakus 

andha  Konag. 

immana 

Kassapa 

Gautama 

Metteya 

The  Mahayana  pantheon,  however,  is  extended  far  beyond 
this  simple  scheme,  to  include  more  than  five  hundred 
divinities:  in  the  words  of  Lafcadio  Hearn,  "a  most 
ancient  shoreless  sea  of  forms  incomprehensibly  inter- 
changing and  intermingling,  but  symbolizing  the  protean 
magic  of  that  infinite  Unknown  that  shapes  and  reshapes 
for  ever  all  cosmic  being."  Of  all  these  divinities  some 
further  account  is  given  below,  but  there  must  be  men- 
tioned here  Prajilaparamita,  the  Bodhisattvas  ManjusrI 
(Plate  DD)  and  the  Chinese  Ti-tsang  and  Kwannon 
(kwanyin.  Plates  GG,  HH),  and  also  the  Taras  or 
Saviouresses  who  are  feminine  divinities,  recognized  from 
about  the  sixth  century  a.d.  as  embodying  the  principle  of 
Grace  in  the  Bodhisattvas.  The  full  development  of  this 
pantheon  takes  place  during  the  first  twelve  centuries  a.d., 
though  its  beginnings  are  earlier.  Its  final  elaboration 
in  Lamaistic  Buddhism  continues  later. 
We  must  now  consider  the  Nirmanakaya,  the  plane  of 
those  Buddha-appearances  which  are  emanated  or  pro- 
jected from  the  Sambhogakaya  as  magical  earthly  ap- 
paritions, a  doctrine  of  revelation  in  response  to  the 
spiritual  needs  of  sentient  beings.     We  have  already  seen 

249 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

that  at  an  early  stage  of  Buddhism  Gautama  is  already  made 
to  affirm  that  he  is  not  a  man,  but  a  Buddha ;  here,  in  a 
development  similar  to  that  of  Christian  Docetism,  we 
find  the  view  put  forward  that  the  earthly  Buddhas  are 
not  living  men,  but  ghosts  or  forms  of  thought,  acting  as 
vehicles  of  the  saviour-will  which  led  the  Bodhisattva  to 
the  abyss  of  Buddhahood.  In  part,  no  doubt,  this  repre- 
sents an  attempt  to  get  over  the  logical  difficulty  presented 
by  the  continued  survival  of  the  person  Gautama  for 
many  years  after  the  attainment  of  that  enlightenment 
which  cuts  the  connecting  bonds  of  the  spiritual  compound 
known  as  personality;  this  continuance  has  also  been 
aptly  compared  to  the  continued  spinning  of  the  potter's 
wheel  for  some  time  after  the  hand  of  the  potter  has  been 
removed,  the  final  physical  death  of  the  body  being 
likened  to  the  subsequent  stopping  of  the  wheel. 

Convenient  Means 

Intimately  associated  with  the  doctrine  of  emanation  is 
that  of  Convenient  Means  {npdya) :  "  the  Heart  of  Wisdom 
abiding  in  the  Unity  creates  particular  means  of  salvation  " 
(Nagarjuna).  The  knowledge  of  these  means  is  one  of 
the  perfections  of  Buddhahood,  and  is  the  power  of 
response  to  the  infinite  variety  of  the  spiritual  needs  of 
sentient  beings.  The  various  forms  which  the  divine 
Tathagata  assumes,  revealing  himself  in  the  right  place, 
at  the  right  time,  and  never  missing  the  right  opportunity 
and  the  right  word — these  manifestations  constitute  the 
Nirmanakaya.  To  a  certain  extent  the  doctrine  of  upaya 
corresponds  to  the  ready  wit  of  such  teachers  as  Buddha 
or  Christ,  who  with  little  effort  so  effectually  render 
aid  to  those  who  seek  them,  and  no  less  effectually  con- 
found their  opponents :  admirably  illustrated,  for  example, 
250 


Convenient  Means 

in  Gautama's  dealing  with  Gotami  the  Slender,  and  in 
many  well-known  anecdotes  of  Jesus.  Of  either  it  may- 
be said, 

He  is  the  Answere7% 

What  can  be  afiswer'd  he  answers,  and  luhat  cannot  be 
answei'^d  he  shows  how  it  cannot  be  answei'^d. 

This  is  also  a  doctrine  of  the  graduation  of  truth :  faiths 
are  not  divided  into  the  true  and  the  false,  but  are  so 
many  rungs  of  the  ladder,  so  many  separate  ladders,  that 
lead  to  One  Unknown.  The  doctrine  of  upaya  implies 
the  perfect  understanding  of  human  needs  by  that  divine 
intelligence  that  knows  no  need  in  itself,  save  that  implied 
in  the  saying.  Eternity  is  in  love  with  the  productions  of  time 
— the  only  reason  we  can  allege  for  the  desire  of  the  One  to 
become  many.  This  perfect  understanding,  "  as  of  father 
with  son,  comrade  with  comrade,  lover  with  mistress,"  ^  does 
not  clash  with  the  intellectual  recognition  of  the  gods  as 
man-made,  and  this  the  Hindus  have  beautifully  recon- 
ciled with  the  idea  of  Grace,  in  the  adoration  "  Thou  that 
doest  take  the  forms  imagined  by  Thy  worshippers" — 
addressed,  indeed,  by  Saivas  to  Siva,  but  no  less  appropriate 
to  the  thought  of  the  Mahayana.  The  doctrine  of  upaya 
is  comparable  also  with  the  thought,  "  He  makes  himself 
as  we  are,  that  we  may  be  as  He  is."  The  arts  and 
religions  of  the  world  are  all  so  many  upayas — one  source, 
one  end,  only  with  diversity  of  means. 
A  second  Mahayana  school,  in  some  respects  divergent 
from  the  Madhyamika  school  of  Nagarjuna,  is  the  Yoga- 
cara  school  of  Asanga  and  Vasubandhu.  Here  three 
kinds  of  knowledge  are  recognized  in  place  of  two;  but 
two  of  these  three  are  merely  a  subdivision   of  relative 

^  Bhagavad  Gita,  xi,  44. 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

knowledge,  into  positive  error  and  relative  knowledge 
properly  so-called.  We  have  thus  in  place  of  samviitti 
and  pa7nmdrtha  satya : 

(i)  Parikalpita  satya,  for  example,  when  we  mistake  a 
rope  for  a  snake. 

(2)  Paratanhn  satya,  for  example,  when  we  recognize 
the  rope  as  a  rope. 

(3)  Pa^ispanna  satya,  when  we  recognize  that  'rope'  is 
a  mere  concept,  and  has  no  being  as  a  thing  in  itself. 

Of  which  (i)  and  (2)  are  together  samvritti  and  (3)  is 
paramartha. 

The  Yogacaras  also  maintain  a  form  of  idealism  which 
differs  from  the  absolute  agnosticism  of  the  Madhyamikas. 
According  to  the  former,  there  does  really  exist  a  cosmic, 
not  impersonal,  Mind,  called  Alaya-vijriana,^  the  All- 
containing,  or  Ever-enduring,  Mind.  All  things  in  the 
universe  rest  in,  or  rather  consist  of  this  substrate.  It  is 
sometimes  confused  with  the  Suchness;  but  actually 
it  corresponds  rather  to  the  saguna  (qualified)  than  the 
nirguna  (unqualified)  Brahman  of  the  Brahmans.  It  pro- 
vides the  basis  for  a  sort  of  Platonic  idealism;  for, 
according  to  the  Yogacaras,  it  is  in  this  Cosmic  Mind 
that  the  germs  of  all  things  exist  in  their  ideality.  In 
other  words,  the  objective  world  consists  entirely  of  mind- 
stuff,  and  it  is  the  illusion  born  of  ignorance  that  projects 
the  real  ideas  into  an  external  and  phenomenal  universe. 

///.  CH'AN,  OR  ZEN  BUDDHISM 
We  have  so  far  set  forth  the  Mahayana  according  to  the 
Madhyamika  school  of  Nagarjuna  and  the  Yogacara  school 
of  Asanga,  with  illustration  of  the  Sambhogakaya  accord- 
ing to  the  sect  of  the  Amidists,  and  with  some  notice 
^  Hence  the  Yogacaras  are  commonly  spoken  of  as  Vijnanavadins. 
252 


Ch'an,  or  Zen  Buddhism 

of  other  special  cults,  particularly  that  of  Avalokitesvara. 
We  shall  now  notice  at  greater  length  another  phase  of 
the  Mahayana,  likewise  of  Indian  origin,  and  of  somewhat 
later  development  in  China  and  Japan.     This  is  the  school 
of  Bodhidharma,  known  in  China  as  Ch'an,  and  in  Japan 
as  Zen  Buddhism,  from  the  Indian  v^ovAJkdna  or  Dhydna 
already  explained.    This  Ch'an,  or  Zen  Buddhism,  though 
in  a  practical  and  more  or  less  intimate  way  associated  with 
the  cult  of  Amitabha,  represents  the  more  philosophical  and 
mystic  aspect  of  the  Mahayana,  and  is  essentially  indif- 
ferent to  iconolatry  and   to  scriptural  authority.      This 
phase  of  Mahayana  is  little  determined  by  special  forms, 
and  can  scarcely  be  said  to  have  any  other  creed  than 
that  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  in  the  heart  of  man.     This 
school  of  thought  most  fully  represents  the  Mahayana  as 
a  world  religion ;  for  however  attractive  and  picturesque 
may  be  the  imagery  of  Amitabha's  Western  Paradise, 
however  tender  the  legendary    histories    of    the  deified 
Buddhas  and  Bodhisattvas,  these  visions  of  a  material 
and  sectarian  paradise,  and  these  personal  divinities  can 
claim   universal   acceptance  no  more  than  those  of  any 
other  theistic  system.     Ch'an  Buddhism  differs  from  the 
orthodox  and   popular  Mahayana  of  the  theistic  Sutras 
just  as  the  teaching  of  Christ  and  of  the  Christian  mystics 
differs  from  the  systematic  Christianity  of  the  Churches. 
Furthermore,  it  is  in  close  alliance  withTaoist  philosophy, 
and  constitutes  not  merely  a  religion,  but  the  essential 
culture  of  the  Far  East,  finding  full  expression  not  only 
in  belief,  but  practically  in  life  and  art. 
Ch'an  Buddhism  was  founded  in  China  by  the  patriarch 
Bodhidharma,  claimed  to  be  the  twenty-eighth  in  apostolic 
succession  from  Gautama,  in  the  year  527.     This  great 
man,  whose  Chinese  ministry  lasted  for  only  nine  years, 

253 


Buddha  &*  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

and  whose  personality  has  yet  impressed  itself  so  deeply 
on  the  memory  of  the  Far  East,  was  of  a  taciturn  and 
even  farouche  disposition,  and  little  inclined  to  suffer 
fools  gladly.  He  spent  the  nine  years  of  his  life  in  China 
(a.d.  527-536)  in  the  Shao  Lin  monastery,  near  Loyang, 
achieving  little  popularity,  and  earned  the  nick-name  of 
the  'Wall-gazing  Brahman.'  The  essence  of  his  doctrine 
asserts  that  the  Buddha  is  not  to  be  found  in  images  and 
books,  but  in  the  heart  of  man.  His  followers,  as  the 
name  of  the  school  implies,  lay  great  stress  on  medita- 
tion ;  they  avoid  the  slavish  worship  of  images,  the  fetters 
of  authority,  and  the  evils  of  priestcraft.^ 
The  fundamental  principle  of  Ch'an,  or  Zen  Buddhism, 
may  be  summed  up  in  the  expression  that  the  Universe  is 
the  scripture  of  Zen ^^  or  more  philosophically,  the  identity 
of  the  Many  and  the  One,  of  Samsara  with  the  Brahman, 
This  with  That.  Actual  scripture  is  worthless  in  the  letter, 
and  only  valuable  for  that  to  which  it  leads ;  and  to.that  goal 
there  are  other  guides  than  the  written  page  or  spoken  word. 

^  It  must  not  be  supposed,  however,  that  the  wide  diffusion  of  Ch'an 
ideas  in  China  has  done  away  with  ritual  worship,  or  even  with  super- 
stition. The  creed  of  the  Chinese  layman,  as  in  other  countries,  is 
"  often  crude,  irrational,  and  superstitious  ;  he  is  liable  to  mistake  symbol 
for  objective  truth ;  and  he  is  apt  to  assume  that  faith  is  a  sufficient 
guarantee  of  historic  fact." — R.  F.  Johnston,  Buddhist  China,  p.  96. 
The  Ch'an  and  Amidist  parties,  respectively  philosophical  or  mystic, 
and  devotional,  are  closely  allied — gorgeous  shrines  are  often  attached 
to  Ch'an  monasteries — very  much  as  Christian  mysticism  is  associated 
with  the  iconolatry  of  the  Roman  church.  The  Chinese  Buddhist 
leans  to  one  side  or  the  other  according  to  his  temperament  and 
spiritual  needs. 

^  He,  therefore,  is  the  true  Teacher  'who  makes  you  perceive  the 
Supreme  'Sy'tM  zvherever  the  mind  attaches  itself  (Kabir)  :  for  'Whatever 
thing,  of  whatsoever  kind  it  be,  'tis  wisdom's  part  in  each  the  real  thing 
to  see'  {Kurraly  xxxvi,  5).     All  is  in  all. 

254 


Ch'an,  or  Zen  Buddhism 

It  is  related,  for  example,  of  the  sage  Huen  Sha  that  he 
was  one  day  prepared  to  deliver  a  sermon  to  an  assembled 
congregation,  and  was  on  the  point  of  beginning,  when  a 
bird  was  heard  to  sing  very  sweetly  close  by;  Hiien  Sha 
descended  from  his  pulpit  with  the  remark  that  the 
sermon  had  been  preached.  Another  sage,  Teu  Tse,  one 
day  pointed  to  a  stone  lying  near  the  temple  gate,  and 
remarked,  '  Therein  reside  all  the  Buddhas  of  the  past, 
the  present,  and  the  future.'  The  face  of  Nature  was 
called  '  The  Sermon  of  the  Inanimate.' 
As  we  have  already  indicated,  some  of  these  concep- 
tions may  be  traced  back  to  very  early  Buddhist  origins, 
and  it  would  be  easy  likewise  to  point  to  Western 
parallels.  When  the  Zen  teachers  point  to  the  rising 
and  setting  of  the  sun,  to  the  deep  sea,  or  to  the  falling 
flakes  of  snow  in  winter,  and  thereby  inculcate  the  lessons 
of  Zen,  we  are  reminded  of  One  who  bids  us  consider  the 
lilies,  which  toil  not,  neither  do  they  spin,  and  who  bids 
us  not  to  be  anxious  for  the  morrow.  When  the  mysterious 
visitors  to  the  Chinese  island  of  Puto,  being  asked 
to  explain  their  religious  beliefs,  reply,  "Our  eyes  have 
seen  the  ocean,  our  ears  have  heard  the  winds  sighino-, 
the  rain  descending,  the  sea  waves  dashing,  and  the  wild 
birds  calling,"  i  we  are  reminded  of  Blake,  exclaiming, 
"  When  thou  seest  an  eagle,  thou  seest  a  portion  of  genius. 
Lift  up  thy  head  1 "  and  "  The  pride  of  the  peacock  is  the 
glory  of  God." 

The    lines   already   quoted  —  a   complete    poem    in    the 
Japanese  original — 

Granted  this  dewdrop  world  be  djit  a  dcwdrop  ivor/d, 
This  granted,  yet  .  .  . 

^  R.  F.  Johnston,  Buddhist  China,  p.  3S8. 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

are  purely  of  the  Zen  tradition,  though  not  perhaps  its 
most  profound  expression.  That  most  profound  intuition 
is  of  the  one  Suchness  that  finds  expression  in  the  very 
transcience  of  every  passing  moment :  the  same  indivisible 
being  is  ever  coming  to  expression,  and  never  expressed, 
in  the  coming  to  be  and  passing  away  of  man  and  of  the 
whole  world  moment  by  moment ;  it  is  the  very  heart  of 
'culture'  and  religion  to  recognize  the  eternal,  not  as 
obscured,  but  as  revealed  by  the  transient,  to  see  infinity 
in  the  grain  of  sand,  the  same  unborn  in  every  birth,  and 
the  same  undying  in  every  death.  These  thoughts  find 
constant  expression  in  the  poetry  and  art  inspired  by  Zen 
thought.  The  Morning  Glory,  for  example,  fading  in 
an  hour,  is  a  favourite  theme  of  the  Japanese  poet  and 
painter.  What  are  we  to  understand  by  the  poem  of 
Matsunaga  Teitoku  ? 

T/ie  morni7ig  glory  bloo^ns  but  an  hotir^  and  yet  it  differs 

not  at  heart 
From  the  giafit  pine  that  lives  for  a  thottsand years. 

Are  we  to  think  of  the  morning  glory  as  a  type  and  symbol 
of  the  tragic  brevity  of  our  life,  as  a  memento  mori,  a  re- 
minder of  impermanence,  like  the  wagtail's  tail  ?  We  may 
do  this  without  error :  but  there  lies  beyond  this  a  deeper 
meaning  in  the  words  of  Matsunaga,  something  more  than 
a  lamentation  for  the  very  constitution  of  our  experience. 
According  to  the  commentary  of  Kinso : 
"  He  who  has  found  the  way  in  the  morning  may  die  at 
peace  in  the  evening.  To  bloom  in  the  morning,  to  await 
the  heat  of  the  sun,  and  then  to  perish,  such  is  the  lot 
appointed  to  the  morning  glory  by  Providence.  There 
are  pines,  indeed,  which  have  lived  for  a  thousand  years, 
but  the  morning  glory,  who  must  die  so  soon,  never  for  a 
256 


Ch'an,  or  Zen  Buddhism 

moment  forgets  herself,  or  shows  herself  to  be  envious  of 
others.  Every  morning  her  flowers  unfold,  magically  fair, 
they  yield  the  natural  virtue  that  has  been  granted  to 
them,  then  they  wither.  And  thus  they  perform  their 
duty  faithfully.  Why  condemn  that  faithfulness  as  vain 
and  profitless  ? 

"  It  is  the  same   with    the  pine    as   with   the  morning 
glory,  but  as  the  life  of  the  latter  is  the  shorter,  it  illustrates 
the  principle  in  a  more  striking  way.     The  giant  pine 
does  not  ponder  on  its  thousand  years,  nor  the  morning 
glory  on  its  life  of  a  single  day.     Each  does  simply  what 
it  must.     Certainly,  the  fate  of  the  morning  glory  is  other 
than  that  of  the  pine,  yet  their  destiny  is  alike  in  this,  that 
they  fulfil  the  will  of  Providence,  and  are  content.     Mat- 
sunaga  thought  his  heart  was  like  their  heart,  and  that  is 
why  he  made  that  poem  on  the  morning  glory."  ^ 
Closely   consonant    with    Matsunaga's    poem    is    Henry 
King's  Contemplation  tipon  Flowers.     The  student  will, 
indeed,  find  that  nearly  every  thought  expressed  in  Budd- 
hist and  Hindu  literature  finds  expression  in  the  Western 
world  also ;  and  it  could  not  be  otherwise,  for  the  value 
of  these  thoughts  is  universal,  and  therefore  they  could  not 
be  more  Oriental  than  Western ;  the  East  has  advanced 
beyond  the  West  only  in  their  wider  and  fuller  acceptance. 

Brave  flowers  that  I  could  gallant  it  like  you. 

And  be  as  little  vain  ! 
Yon  come  abroad^  and  make  a  harmless  show^ 

And  to  your  beds  of  earth  agai^i. 
You  are  7iot  proud :  yoti  know  your  birth  : 
For  your  embroidered  garments  are  fro7n  earth. 

^  R.  Petrucci,  La   Philosophie   de  la  Nature  dans  l^Art  d^ Extreme- 
Orient. 

R  '  257 


^1:  Buddha  &>  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

And  with  this  contrasts  the  futile  longing  of  man  for  an 
eternity  of  happiness : 

Vou  do  obey  your  months  and  timeSy  but  I 

Would  have  it  ever  Spring : 
My  fate  would  knozv  no  Winter ^  never  die, 

Nor  think  of  such  a  thing. 
O  that  I  could  my  bed  of  earth  but  view 
And  smile,  and  look  as  cheerfully  as  you  I 

And  so  it  is  that  the  Sermon  of  the  Woods  should  teach 
us  spontaneity  of  action,  to  fall  in  with  the  natural  order 
of  the  world,  neither  apathetic  nor  rebellious,  but  possess- 
ing our  souls  in  patience. 


258 


PART  V  :  BUDDHIST  ART 

/.  BUDDHIST  LITERA  TURE 

Language  and  Writing 

WE  may  safely  assume  that  Gautama's  teaching 
was  communicated  to  his  disciples  in  MagadhI, 
the  spoken  dialect  of  his  native  country.  The 
oldest  contemporary  documents  of  Buddhist  literature, 
the  Edicts  of  Asoka,  are  written  in  a  later  form  of  the 
sister  dialect  of  Kosala.^  The  Hinayana  Buddhist  scrip- 
tures, the  Theravada  Canon  or  old  Buddhist  Bible,  are 
preserved  to  us  only  in  the  literary  dialect  known  as  Pali ; 
while  the  later  Mahayana  texts  of  the  Mahayana  are  com- 
piled to  us  in  Sanskrit,  and  preserved  in  that  form,  or  in 
the  early  Chinese  translations.  Pali  and  Sanskrit  in 
Buddhist  circles  play  the  part  which  was  taken  by  Latin 
in  the  Christian  Church  of  the  Middle  Ages.  Pali  is  a 
literary  form  based  on  MagadhI,  gradually  developed,  and 
perhaps  only  definitely  fixed  when  the  scriptures  were  first 
written  down  in  Ceylon  about  80  B.C. 
How  can  we  speak  of  authentic  scriptures  which  were  not 
put  into  writing  until  four  centuries  after  the  death  of 
the  teacher  whose  words  are  recorded  ?  That  is  possible 
in  India,  though  not  in  Europe.  In  the  time  of  Gautama, 
a  very  long  period  of  literary  activity  was  already  past, 
and  the  same  activity  still  continued.  Vedic  literature,  in 
particular,  with  the  exception  of  the  later  Upanishads,  was 
already  ancient,  while  the  work  of  the  great  compilers  of 
epic  poetry,  and  of  the  grammarians  and  lawmen,  is  only 

^  The  Edicts  0/  Asoka,  though  veritable  Buddhist  literature,  are  not 
included  in  the  scriptural  canon,  and  are  here  referred  to  in  a  separate 
chapter,  p.  180  seq. 

259 


Buddha  &P  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

a  little  later,  and  this  literature  has  been  faithfully  trans- 
mitted to  the  present  day.     There  existed  also  a  great 
mass   of   contemporary   popular   poetry  in   the  form  of 
ballads  and  romances,  tales  and  proverbs,  part  of  which 
is  preserved  and   embedded  in   Buddhist  and  Sanskrit 
literature,  such  as  the  Pali  Jatakas  and  the  Brahmanical 
epics.      And  yet  it  is  unlikely  that  any  written  books 
existed  much  before  the  time  of  Asoka. 
Writing  was  first  introduced  to  India  about  the  eighth 
century  b.c,  probably   by   merchants    trading   with    the 
cities  of  the  Euphrates  valley,  but  for  a  long  time  the 
idea  of  the  written  word  was  regarded  in  literary  circles 
with  much  disfavour.     One  curious  illustration  of  this 
appears  in  the  fact  that  books  are  not  included  in  the  list 
of   personal   property   allowed   to   be   possessed   by   the 
Brethren.     The  Indians  had  long  since  elaborated  a  system 
of  remembered  literature,  which,  given  the  certainty  of  a 
regular  succession  of  teachers  and  disciples,  secured  the 
transmission  of  texts  as  well,  and  perhaps  better  than  the 
written  page.    Because  of  this  mnemonic  system,  the  lack 
of  external  means  of  record  had  not  been  felt.     Study 
consisted,  therefore  in  hearing,  and  in  repeating  to  one- 
self,  not  in  the  reading  of  books.      This  tradition  has 
survived  in  considerable  vigour  to  the  present  day ;  it  is 
no  uncommon  thing  to  meet  with  Pandits  who  can  repeat 
from  memory  a  body  of  sacred  literature  of  almost  incred- 
ible extent,  and  it  is  still  believed  that  "oral  instruction 
is  far  superior  to  book-learning  in  maturing  the  mind  and 
developing  its  powers."     It  hardly  needs  to  be  pointed 
out  that  many  great  thinkers,  both  ancient  and  modern, 
have  shared  this  view.     Plato  suggests  that  the  invention 
of  letters  "will  produce  forgetfulness  in   the  minds  of 
those  who  learn  it,  through  neglect  of  memory,  for  that, 
260 


Language  and  Writing 

through  trusting  to  writing,  they  will  remember  outwardly 
by  means  of  foreign  marks,  and  not  inwardly  by  means 
of  their  own  faculties;"  while  Nietzsche  exclaims  that 
"  He  that  writeth  in  blood  and  proverbs,  doth  not  want  to 
be  read,  but  to  be  learnt  by  heart,"  In  point  of  fact  the 
principal  literary  form  of  the  age  of  Gautama  is  that  of 
the  Sutra  or  Siitta,  a  '  string '  of  logia  to  be  learnt  by 
heart;  and  almost  all  early  Indian  literature,  even  the 
literature  of  law  and  grammar,  is  compiled  in  verse. 
Another  reason  for  regarding  writing  with  disfavour  was 
that  the  written  text  becomes  accessible  to  all,  while  the 
Brahmans  at  any  rate  wished  to  withhold  the  esoteric 
doctrine  from  those  not  qualified  to  understand  or  to 
make  good  use  of  it,  and  other  matter  from  those  who 
would  perhaps  encroach  on  their  professional  rights.  The 
system  of  mnemonic  education  and  pupillary  succession 
was  also  so  well  organized  that  there  was  no  fear  that  the 
well-trained  'rememberer'  would  ever  forget  what  he 
knew ;  the  only  recognized  dangers  were  that  certain  texts 
might  fall  out  of  favour  and  so  be  finally  lost,  as  has 
inevitably  happened  with  a  great  part  of  early  Indian 
literature,  or  that  some  accident  might  interfere  with  the 
pupillary  or  '  apostolic '  succession.  Moreover,  the  means 
of  making  durable  books  had  not  yet  been  devised  in  the 
time  of  Gautama.  On  the  other  hand  it  is  clear  from  the 
mode  of  publication  of  Asoka's  edicts  that  a  fairly  general 
knowledge  of  writing,  a  literacy  perhaps  about  the  same 
as  that  of  modern  India,  had  been  attained  by  the  third 
century  B.C. 

The  Buddhist  canon  was  first  written  down  in  Pali  about 
80  B.C.,  in  the  reign  of  King  Vattagamani,  in  Ceylon.  It 
is  worth  while  to  quote  the  words  of  the  Sinhalese 
chronicle  on  this  important  event : 

261 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

"The  text  of  the  Three  Pitakas  and  the  commentary 
thereon  did  the  most  wise  Bhikkhus  hand  down  in  former 
times  orally,  but  since  they  saw  that  the  people  were 
falling  away  (from  the  orthodox  teaching),  the  bhikkhus 
met  together,  and  in  order  that  the  true  doctrines  might 
endure,  they  wrote  them  down  in  books."  ^ 
These  texts  have  been  faithfully  transmitted  to  modern 
times  by  successive  copyists.  On  the  other  hand  it  is 
quite  certain  that  a  considerable  part  already  existed  in 
the  same  form  in  the  time  of  Asoka,  for  some  of  the  texts 
are  referred  to  by  name,  and  with  quotation,  in  the  Edicts. 
Without  entering  upon  a  long  discussion,  it  will  suffice  to 
say  that  some  parts  of  the  texts  almost  as  certainly  go  back 
to  an  earlier  period,  and  record  the  sayings  and  doctrine 
of  Gautama  as  remembered  by  his  immediate  disciples. 
The  orthodox  Hinayanists,  however,  are  not  justified  in 
asserting  that  the  Pali  canon  was  actually  fixed,  still  less 
that  it  was  written  down,  at  the  'First  Council'  imme- 
diately following  the  death  of  Gautama;  the  Buddhist 
Bible,  like  the  Christian,  consists  of  books  composed  at 
different  ages,  and  many  or  most  of  the  books  are  compila- 
tions of  materials  by  many  hands  and  of  various  periods. 

Tke  Pali  Canon 

The  Pali  canon  consists  of  '  Three  Pitakas,'  or  '  Baskets.' 
The  Vinaya  Pitaka  is  concerned  with  the  rules  of  the 
Order  of  Brethren.     It  is  subdivided  as  follows : 

Khandaka        jMahavagga 
[Cullavagga 
Parivara 

^  Mahdvamsa^  ch.  xxxiii. 
262 


A.     CALLING    THE     EARTH    TO    WITNESS    (THE    ASSAULT 

OF  MARA) 
Cave  painting  at  Dambulla,  Ceylon  (i8th  century') 


^^^^^^^^^E-^— 3~j]^Hpj|p^  ^HH 

|H^^HB 

^^^^^^^^^B 

4-'.'>^'  -'^-^y'    >.  -  ^    -g^^^^B^^B 

T^T^ 

b:-^i^:^"             S            -^1 

JJJJ^l^^ 

Plat*  T 


B.     BUDDHIST   LIBRARY.    KANDY,  CEYLON 


.62 


The  Pali  Canon 

We  need  not  repeat  here  what  has  been  said  elsewhere 
regarding  the  organization  of  the  Order  of  bhikkhus.  But 
it  is  of  interest  to  note  that  the  first  chapter  of  the 
Mahavagga  contains  some  of  the  oldest  parts  of  the 
Buddha  legend,  relating  in  dignified  archaic  language 
how  Gautama  attained  enlightenment,  determined  to 
preach  the  Law,  and  gained  his  first  disciples.  Here  also 
the  First  Sermon  of  the  Buddha,  at  Benares,  and  the 
well-known  Fire  Sermon  are  given,  and  the  ordination  of 
Rahula  is  also  related.  In  the  Cullavagga  are  found  the 
stories  of  the  merchant  Anathapindika  who  dedicated  a 
park  to  the  Order ;  of  Devadatta,  Gautama's  cousin  and 
enemy,  the  first  schismatic;  the  establishment  of  the 
order  of  Sisters ;  and  a  number  of  edifying  anecdotes,  all 
connected  with  the  history  or  constitution  of  the  Order. 
We  have  already  quoted  the  First  Sermon  of  Gautama, 
in  which  are  set  forth  the  essentials  of  the  Dhamma,  the 
Four  Ariyan  Truths  and  the  Eightfold  Path.  Here  we 
transcribe,  with  some  abbreviation,  the  almost  equally 
famous  sermon  in  which  the  transient  life  of  the  individual, 
subject  to  grief  and  tormented  by  desires  is  likened  to 
existence  in  the  midst  of  a  fire. 

"Then  said  the  Exalted  One  to  his  disciples:  'Every- 
thing, O  disciples,  is  in  flames.  And  what  Everything, 
O  disciples,  is  in  flames?  The  eye,  O  disciples,  is  in 
flames,  the  visible  is  in  flames,  the  knowledge  of  the 
visible  is  in  flames,  the  contact  with  the  visible  is  in 
flames,  the  feeling  which  arises  from  contact  with  the 
visible  is  in  flames,  be  it  pleasure,  be  it  pain,  be  it  neither 
pleasure  nor  pain,  this  also  is  in  flames.  By  what  fire 
is  it  kindled  ?  By  the  fire  of  desire,  by  the  fire  of  hate, 
by  the  fire  of  fascination,  it  is  kindled ;  by  birth,  old  age, 
death,   pain,   lamentation,   sorrow,   grief,   despair,   it    is 

26^ 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

kindled :  thus  I  say.  The  ear  is  in  flames,  the  audible  is 
in  flames,  the  knowledge  of  the  audible  is  in  flames,  the 
contact  with  the  audible  is  in  flames,  the  feeling  which 
arises  from  contact  with  the  audible  is  in  flames,  be  it 
pleasure,  be  it  pain,  be  it  neither  pleasure  nor  pain,  this 
also  is  in  flames.  By  what  fire  is  it  kindled?  By  the 
fire  of  desire,  by  the  fire  of  hate,  by  the  fire  of  fascination, 
it  is  kindled ;  by  birth,  old  age,  death,  pain,  lamentation, 
sorrow,  grief,  despair,  it  is  kindled;  thus  I  say.  The 
sense  of  smell  is  in  flames' — and  then  follows  for  the 
third  time  the  same  series  of  propositions; — '  the  tongue  is 
in  flames ;  the  body  is  in  flames ;  the  mind  is  in  flames ' ; — 
each  time  the  same  detail  follows  unabridged.  Then  the 
address  goes  on : 

" '  Knowing  this,  O  disciples,  a  wise,  noble,  hearer  of  the 
word  becomes  wearied  of  the  eye,  he  becomes  wearied  of 
the  visible,  he  becomes  wearied  of  the  knowledge  of  the 
visible,  he  becomes  wearied  of  contact  with  the  visible, 
he  becomes  wearied  of  the  feeling  which  arises  from 
contact  with  the  visible,  be  it  pleasure,  be  it  pain,  be  it 
neither  pleasure  nor  pain.  He  becomes  wearied  of  the 
ear' — and  then  follows  one  after  the  other  the  whole 
series  of  ideas  as  above.  The  address  concludes : 
"  *  While  he  becomes  wearied  thereof,  he  becomes  free 
from  desire ;  free  from  desire,  he  becomes  delivered ;  in 
the  delivered  arises  the  knowledge:  I  am  delivered; 
rebirth  is  at  an  end,  perfected  is  holiness,  duty  done; 
there  is  no  more  returning  to  this  world ;  he  knows  this."  * 
It  should  be  noted  that  this  address  is  delivered  by 
Gautama  to  an  assembly  of  Brethren  already  initiated 
and  ordained,  already  familiar  with  the  thought  of  origin- 
ation and  decease.  A  somewhat  different  method  is 
^  Condensed  from  Oldenberg.  Another  version  above,  p.  42. 
264 


The  Pali  Canon 

employed  in  addresses  to  uninitiated  laymen,  such  as  the 
80,000  village  elders  sent  by  King  Bimbisara  to  the 
Buddha  for  instruction.  There  is  in  a  much  more  popular 
style — milk  for  babes.  When  in  another  place  the  Buddha 
is  accused  of  favouritism,  inasmuch  as  he  teaches  the 
more  profound  doctrine  to  his  disciples  and  more  simple 
matters  to  the  public,  he  draws  an  analogy  from  the 
operations  of  a  farmer,  who  devotes  the  most  care  to  his 
most  productive  fields  (the  Brethren),  somewhat  less 
attention  to  the  less  fertile  fields  (the  Buddhist  laity),  and 
less  still  to  the  barren  soil  (those  who  do  not  accept  the 
Good  Law). 

While  Discipline  is  dealt  with  in  the  Vinaya  Pitaka,  the 
S^itta  Pitaka,  the  '  Basket  of  Suttas '  is  our  chief  source 
for  the  Buddha's  Gospel  as  expounded  in  argument  and 
dialogues.  Here  also  are  included  the  "  Psalms  of  the 
Brethren  and  Sisters,"  the  most  important  literary  pro- 
duction of  early  Buddhism,  and  the  Jdtakas,  which 
embody  the  largest  and  oldest  collection  of  folklore 
extant.     The  Siitta  Pitaka  is  divided  as  follows  : 

1.  Digha  Nikdya\  2.  Majjhima  Nikdya\  3.  Samyittta 
Nikdya\  4.  Anguttara  Nikdya\  and  5.  KImddaka 
Nikdya.     The  last,  again,  includes,  i.  Kh7iddakapdtha\ 

2.  Dha7nmapada ;  3.  Uddna ;  4.  Ithmttaka ;  5.  Siitta- 
nipdta\  6.  Viindnavatthu\  7.  Petavatthu\  8.  Thcra- 
gdthd\  9.  Thcr~igdthd\  \o.  Jdtaka\  11.  Nidd€sa\  12. 
Patisainbhiddmagga\  13.  Apaddna\  14.  Buddhavanisa\ 
and  15.   Cariydpitaka. 

The  first  of  the  Digha  Nikdya  Suttas  is  called  the  Perfect 
Net.  In  this  net  are  supposed  to  be  caught  and  exposed 
each  and  all  of  sixty-two  different  philosophies  which 
proceed  from  the  ancient  animistic  conception  of  soul 
as   a   subtle,    permanent    entity    within    the    body,    and 

265 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

independent  of  the  life  of  the  body.  These  various 
eel-wrigglers,  as  Gautama  calls  them,  he  says  are  all 
of  them  trapped  in  the  net  of  the  sixty-two  modes : 
"this  way  and  that  they  plunge  about,  but  they  are  in 
it;  this  way  and  that  they  may  flounder,  but  they  are 
included  in  it,  caught  in  it.  Just,  brethren,  as  when 
a  skilful  fisherman  or  fisher-lad  should  drag  a  tiny  pool 
of  water  with  a  fine-meshed  net  he  might  fairly  think : 
'Whatever  fish  of  size  may  be  in  this  pond,  every  one 
will  be  in  this  net;  flounder  about  as  they  may,  they  will 
be  included  in  it,  and  caught ' ;  just  so  is  it  with  these 
speculators  about  the  past  and  future,  in  this  net,  flounder 
as  they  may,  they  are  included  and  caught." 
It  is  unfortunate  that  in  all  these  cases  we  hear  only  one 
side  of  the  argument,  which  always  appears  to  leave 
no  way  of  escape  for  the  'skilled  absolutist.'  If  ever 
Gautama  met  his  match  we  should  like  to  hear  what 
passed  on  such  an  occasion. 

Of  more  enduring  interest  is  the  Sutta  upon  the  Fniits  of 
the  Life  of  a  Wanderer.  Here,  moreover,  we  do  not  get 
a  purely  Buddhist,  but  rather  an  Indian  point  of  view. 
The  whole  Sutta  constitutes  a  reply  to  the  question, 
what  advantage  is  the  life  of  a  recluse?  King  Ajata- 
sattu  of  Magadha  points  out  the  gain  that  men  derive  from 
their  worldly  occupations,  and  wishes  to  know  what  corre- 
sponding fruit,  visible  here  and  now,  the  members  of  a 
religious  Order  obtain.  Gautama  replies  that  the  fruit 
of  the  life  of  the  member  of  an  Order  may  be  seen  in : 
I .  The  honour  and  respect  shown  to  such  men  by  others 
in  the  world;  even  the  king,  for  example,  would  show 
respect  to  a  man  who  had  formerly  been  a  slave  or  a 
servant,  if  he  adopted  the  homeless  life.  2.  The  train- 
ing in  mere  morality,  as  kindness,  honesty,  chastity,  etc. 
266 


The  Pali  Canon 

3.  Confidence,  freedom  from  fear,  etc.,  born  of  conscious 
rectitude.  4  and  5.  RecoUectedness  and  self-possession. 
6.  Contentment  with  little.  7.  Emancipation  from  the 
Five  Hindrances:  Covetousness,  ill-temper,  laziness, 
anxiety  and  perplexity.  8.  The  consequent  joy  and 
peace.  9.  Practice  of  the  Four  Jhanas.  10.  Insight 
arising  from  knowledge.  11.  The  power  of  projecting 
mental  images.  12.  Five  modes  of  mediumship  and 
clairvoyance  (thought-reading,  audition,  etc.)  ;i  and 
finally  13  (which  alone  is  distinctively  Buddhist), 
realization  of  the  Four  Truths,  destruction  of  the 
Flood  of  Passion,  attainment  of  Arahatta. 
The  argument  concludes : 

"  Thus  with  the  pure  Heavenly  Eye,  surpassing  that  of 
men,  he  sees  beings  as  they  pass  away  from  one  state 
of  existence,  and  take  form  in  another;  he  recognizes  the 
mean  and  the  noble,  the  well-favoured  and  the  ill-favoured, 
the  happy  and  the  wretched,  passing  away  according  to 
their  deeds."  ^ 

And  the  recluse  perceives  the  Four  Arlyan  Truths, 
"  and  he  knows  Rebirth  has  been  destroyed.    The  higher 

^  These  are  practices  generally,  but  by  no  means  always,  condemned 
in  early  Buddhist  scriptures. 

2  I  quote  this  passage  on  the  Heavenly  Eye  {Dibba-cakkhu)—onm\sdcr).\. 
vision  of  all  that  comes  to  pass  in  the  Kamaloka  and  Rupaloka— 
because  the  same  idea  in  a  less  mythical  form  frequently  recurs  in 
Indian  writings,  with  reference  to  the  intuition  of  men  of  genius 
generally ;  it  can  be  paralleled  elsewhere,  e.g.  Chuang  Tzu  :  "  The 
mind  of  the  sage  being  in  repose  becomes  the  mirror  of  the  Universe, 
the  speculum  of  all  creation,"  and  William  Morris  :  "  It  seems  to  me 
that  no  hour  of  the  day  passes  that  the  whole  world  does  not  show 
itself  to  me."  Buddhists  also  recognize  the  Dhamma-cakkhii  (Eye  for 
the  Truth)  and  Panna-cakkhu  (Eye  of  Wisdom).  In  Hindu  mythology 
these  three  modes  of  '  vision '  are  symbolized  by  the  third  eye  which 
opens  on  the  brow  of  Siva. 

267 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

life  has  been  fulfilled.  What  had  to  be  done  has  been  accom- 
plished. After  this  present  life  there  will  be  no  beyond  ! 
"Just,  O  king,  as  if  in  a  mountain  fastness  there  were  a 
pool  of  water,  clear,  translucent,  and  serene ;  and  a  man, 
standing  on  the  bank,  and  with  eyes  to  see,  should 
perceive  the  shellfish,  the  gravel  and  the  pebbles  and  the 
shoals  of  fish,  as  they  move  about  or  lie  within  it :  he 
would  know :  '  This  pool  is  clear,  transparent  and  serene, 
and  there  within  it  are  the  shellfish,  and  the  sand  and 
gravel,  and  that  the  shoals  of  fish  are  moving  about  or 
lying  still.' 

"This,  O  king,  is  an  immediate  fruit  of  the  life  of  a 
recluse,  visible  in  this  world,  and  higher  and  sweeter 
than  the  last.  And  there  is  no  fruit  of  the  life  of  a 
recluse,  visible  in  this  world,  that  is  higher  and  sweeter 
than  this." 

The  Tevijja  Sutta,  one  of  the  very  few  which  emphasize 
the  advantage  of  rebirth  in  the  Brahma  heavens,  while 
leaving  out  of  account  the  fundamental  idea  of  Ara- 
hatta,  is  remarkable  for  the  beautiful  description  of  the 
Four  Sublime  Moods  which,  if  they  are  not  the  end  of 
Buddhist  culture,  are  at  any  rate  its  initiation : 
"  And  he  lets  his  mind  pervade  one  quarter  of  the  world 
with  thoughts  of  Love,  and  so  the  second,  and  so  the 
third,  and  so  the  fourth.  And  thus  the  whole  world, 
above,  below,  around,  and  everywhere,  does  he  continue 
to  pervade  with  heart  of  Love,  far-reaching,  grown  great, 
and  beyond  measure. 

"Just,  Vasettha,  as  a  mighty  trumpeter  makes  himself 
heard — and  that  without  difficulty — in  all  the  four 
directions ;  even  so  of  all  things  that  have  shape  or  life, 
there  is  not  one  that  he  passes  by  or  leaves  aside,  but 
regards  them  all  with  mind  set  free,  and  deep-felt  love. 
268 


The  Pali  Canon 

"Verily  this,  Vasettha,  is  the  way  to  a  state  of  union  with 
Brahma." 

Exactly  the  same  formula  is  repeated  in  the  case  of  the 
three  other  moods,  Compassion,  Sympathy,  and  Im- 
partiality. 

The  Sigdlavdda  Siitta  consists  of  a  discourse  in  which 
the  Buddha  lays  down  for  a  young  layman  the  duties  of 
those  who  live  in  the  world,  in  general  accord  with  the 
injunctions  of  Brahmanical  scriptures. 
A  Sutta  of  greater  importance  is  the  Mahdparinibbdna, 
the  Great  Sutta  of  the  Full  Release,  in  which  the  last 
days  and  last  words  of  the  Teacher  are  recorded.  Some 
parts  of  this  date  back  almost  certainly  to  the  memory  of 
the  Buddha's  immediate  disciples.  Undoubtedly  old,  for 
example,  is  the  famous  saying  : 

"Therefore,  O  Ananda,  be  ye  lamps  unto  yourselves. 
Be  ye  your  own  refuge.  Hold  fast  to  the  Norm  as  your 
Light,  fast  to  the  Norm  as  your  Refuge." 
So  too  the  description  of  Ananda's  overwhelming  grief, 
leaning  against  a  door-post  and  weeping,  until  the  Master 
sends  for  and  speaks  to  him  words  of  consolation.  Many 
of  the  verses  scattered  through  the  prose,  and  marking 
moments  of  heightened  emotion,  must  be  ancient.  In  all 
these  more  ancient  passages  the  Buddha  speaks  entirely 
as  a  man  to  man ;  but  elsewhere  in  the  same  work  super- 
natural powers  and  portents  are  freely  introduced.  A 
number  of  quotations  from  this  Sutta  have  already  been 
given  in  earlier  chapters. 

The  Pdydsi  SiUta  maintains  an  argument  in  favour  of  the 
existence  of  a  soul  quite  contrary  to  the  real  genius  of  early 
Buddhist  thought.  It  is  true  the  upholder  of  the  Buddhist 
position  is  the  venerable  Kumara  Kassapa,  and  not 
Gautama   himself ;   still    it  is  taken  to  be  the  Buddhist 

269 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

position,  and  it  is  very  curious  to  see  the  sceptical  Payasi 
inquiring :  "  But  who  lets  Master  Kassapa  know  all  these 
things :  that  there  are  Three-and-Thirty  Gods,  or  that 
the  Three-and-Thirty  Gods  live  so  many  years  ?  We  do 
not  believe  him  when  he  says  these  things."  This  is 
evidence  that  some  of  the  early  Buddhists,  at  least,  took 
very  seriously  their  pantheon  of  minor  divinities. 
The  Majjhima  Nikaya  contains  a  number — 152 — of 
sermons  and  dialogues  which  are  shorter  than  those 
of  the  Digha  Nikaya. 

The  Samyutta  Nikaya  contains  fifty-six  groups  of  Suttas 
dealing  with  connected  subjects  or  persons.  The  Main- 
samyutta^  and  the  Bhikkwiisamyutta  for  example,  num- 
bers four  and  five  in  the  series,  contain  a  group  of 
legends  in  which  Mara  the  Tempter  appears  to  the 
Buddha,  to  his  disciples,  or  to  one  or  other  of  the 
Sisters,  and  endeavours  to  shake  their  faith.  These 
Suttas  are  cast  in  the  old  form  of  conte  fable,  an 
alternation  of  prose  and  verse,  the  Indian  name  of  which 
is  dkhydna.  Amongst  these  ballads  are  some  of  the 
most  beautiful  of  old  Indian  poems ;  we  recognize  in  them 
also  many  of  the  elements  of  a  primitive  drama,  the 
material  from  which  drama  may  have  developed,  but  we 
cannot  speak  of  them  as  early  Buddhist  dramas  in  them- 
selves, for  they  are  neither  sufficiently  elaborated,  nor  was 
any  such  worldly  activity  as  the  drama  tolerated  in  the 
rule  of  the  Brethren.  Only  at  a  considerably  later  date 
(Asvaghosha)  do  we  find  Buddhist  poets  creating  admit- 
tedly dramatic  works.  Of  the  spiritual  ballads  now  under 
consideration,  the  following  of  GotamI  the  Slender — the 
story  of  whose  conversion  has  already  been  given  (p.  148  f.) 
— will  serve  as  a  good  example  : 

"  Thus  have  I  heard.  The  Master  was  once  staying  at 
270 


The  Pali  Canon 

Savatthi,  in  the  Jetta  grove,  the  park  of  Anathapindika. 
Sister  Kisa  GotamI  dressed  herself  early,  and  taking  the 
alms-bowl  beneath  her  robe,  went  to  Savatthi  to  beg  her 
food.  And  when  she  had  gone  about  Savatthi  and 
returned  with  what  she  had  collected,  and  had  duly  eaten, 
she  entered  the  Dark  Wood,  and  sat  her  down  at  the  foot 
of  a  tree  thinking  to  pass  the  day  there. 
"  Then  the  evil  Mara,  desiring  to  arouse  fear,  wavering, 
and  dread  in  her,  desiring  to  make  her  to  desist  from  her 
concentred  thought,  went  up  to  her.  And  he  addressed 
Kisa  GotamI  in  the  verse  that  follows : 

'  How  comes  it  thou  dost  sit  with  tear-stained  face 
Like  to  some  mother  that  has  lost  her  child? 
Here  dwelling  all  alone  within  the  forest  depths 
Is  it,  perhaps,  a  man  thou  lookest  for  ? ' 

"  Then  GotamI  the  Slender  reflected  :  Who  is  this,  whether 
human  or  not-human,  who  has  spoken  such  a  verse? 
And  it  came  into  her  mind :  It  is  the  evil  Mara,  who 
seeks  to  arouse  in  me  fear,  wavering,  and  dread,  and 
would  make  me  to  desist  from  my  concentred  thought ; 
he  has  spoken  the  verse.  And  when  the  Sister  Kisa 
GotamI  knew  that  it  was  Mara,  she  replied  to  him  in  the 
verse  that  follows : 

Tis  sooth  indeed  that  I  am  she  whose  child  is  lost  for  ever:  ^ 
While  as  for  men^  they  are  not  hard  to  find  t 

I  do  not  weep  7ior  wail,  nor  have  I  any  fear  of  thee,  my  friend: 

Love  of  the  world  is  utterly  destroyed^  the  glooJii  is  rent 
in  twain y 

And  I  have  overcome  the  hosts  of  Death 

And  here  I  dwell,  fro77i  all  the  Deadly  Floods  emancipate.^ 

^  The  words  'for  ever'  convey  the  thought  that  while  GotamI  had  lost 
her  child,  yet,  being  an  Arahat,  never  again  would  she  suffer  the  like  loss. 

271 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

'*  Then  Mara  vanished  thence,  sorry  and  dejected,  think- 
ing :  Sister  GotamI  knoweth  me." 

The  Anguttara  Nikdya  is  a  very  extensive  work,  contain- 
ing at  least  2308  Suttas.     These  are  classified  in  sections, 
numbered  one  to  eleven,  the  Suttas  in  each  section  dealing 
with  such  things  of  which  there  are  as  many  as  the  num- 
ber of  the  Sutta  itself.    Thus  in  the  Second  Section  the 
Suttas    speak  of   the   two   things    which  a  man   should 
avoid,  the  two  kinds  of  Buddhas,  the  two  virtues  of  the 
forest-life ;  in  the  Third  Section  the  Suttas  speak  of  the 
trinity  of  Thought,  Word,  and  Deed,  and  the  three  sorts  of 
monks ;  in  the  Fourth  Section,  the  four  things  which  lead 
to  a  cessation  of  Becoming,  the  four  that  lead  to  Purga- 
tory, the  four  that  lead  to  Paradise,  and  so  forth ;  in  the 
Eighth  Section,  the  eight  ways  in  which  man  and  woman 
mutually  hinder  each  other,  and  the  eight  causes  of  an 
earthquake;  in  the  Tenth  Section,  the  ten  powers  of  a 
Buddha.    Needless  to  point  out,  the  arrangement  is  formal 
and  pedantic,  and  the  general  tone  is  also  somewhat  dry. 
One  of  the  best  passages,  however,  is  that  which  speaks 
of  the  Three  Messengers  of  the  Gods — Old  Age,  Illness, 
and  Death — of  whom  King  Yama  asks  the  misdoers  who 
fall  into  Purgatory,  thus : 

"  '  O  man,  did  you  not  see  the  first  of  Death's  messengers 
visibly  appear  among  men  ? ' 
"  He  replies :  *  Lord,  I  did  not.' 

"Then,  O  Brethren,  King  Yama  says  to  him:  'O  man, 
did  you  not  see  among  men  a  woman  or  a  man,  eighty  or 
ninety  or  hundred  years  of  age,  decrepit,  crooked  as  the 
curved  rafter  of  a  gable  roof,  bowed  down,  leaning  on  a 
staff,  trembling  as  he  walked,  miserable,  with  youth  long 
fled,  broken-toothed,  grey-haired  and  nearly  bald,  totter- 
ing, with  wrinkled  brow,  and  blotched  with  freckles  ? ' 
272 


The  Pali  Canon 

"  He  replied,  '  Lord,  I  did.' 

"Then,  O  Brethren,  King  Yama  says  to  him :  '  O  man,  did 
it  not  occur  to  you,  being  a  person  of  mature  intelligence 
and  years :  "  I  am  also  subject  to  old  age,  and  in  no  way 
exempt.  Come  now,  I  will  act  nobly,  in  deed,  word,  and 
thought?'" 

"  He  replies :  '  Lord,  I  could  not.  Lord,  I  did  not  think.' 
"Then,  O  Brethren,  King  Yama  says  to  him:  'O  man, 
through  thoughtlessness  you  failed  to  act  nobly  in  deed, 
word,  and  thought.  Verily  it  shall  be  done  unto  you,  O 
man,  in  accordance  with  your  thoughtlessness.  ...  It 
was  you  yourself  who  did  this  wickedness,  and  you  alone 
shall  feel  its  consequences  1  " 

From  the  literary  point  of  view  we  may  remark  three 
characteristics  of  the  Suttas  so  far  considered.  First 
of  all,  the  repetitiofiSy  of  which  an  example  will  be  found 
in  the  Fire  Sermon  quoted  above.  It  is  almost  impossible 
to  put  such  texts  before  a  modern  reader  without  con- 
densation, and  without  the  use  of  the  conjunction  'and,' 
and  without,  pronouns,  as  they  are  in  the  original,  to  say 
nothing  of  the  tedious  reiteration  of  every  phrase  and 
every  shade  of  thought. 

"  The  periods  of  these  addresses,"  says  Professor  Olden- 
berg,  "  in  their  motionless  and  rigid  uniformity,  on  which 
no  lights  and  shadows  fall,  are  an  accurate  picture  of  the 
world  as  it  represented  itself  to  the  eye  of  that  monastic 
fraternity,  the  grim  world  of  origination  and  decease, , 
which  goes  on  like  clockwork  in  an  ever  uniform  course, 
and  behind  which  rests  the  still  deep  of  the  Nirvana.  In 
the  words  of  this  ministry,  there  is  heard  no  sound  of 
working  within  ...  no  impassional  entreating  of  men  to 
come  to  the  faith,  no  bitterness  for  the  unbelieving  who 
remain   afar   off.     In    these    addresses,   one  word,   one 

s  273 


Buddha  i^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

sentence,  lies  beside  another  in  stony  stillness,  whether 
it  expresses  the  most  trivial  thing  or  the  most  important. 
As  worlds  of  gods  and  men  are,  for  the  Buddhist  con- 
sciousness, ruled  by  everlasting  necessity,  so  also  are  the 
worlds  of  ideas  and  of  verities:  for  these,  too,  there  is 
one,  and   only  one,  necessary  form   of   knowledge   and 
expression,  and  the  thinker  does  not  make  this  form  but 
he  adopts  what   is   ready  to   hand  .  .  .  and  thus  those 
endless  repetitions  accumulate  which  Buddha's  disciples 
were  never  tired  of  listening  to  anew,  and  always  honour- 
ing afresh  as  the  necessary  garb  of  holy  thought." 
The  Buddhist  authors  were  perhaps  so  much  impressed 
by  and  so  pleased  with  the  excellent  doctrine,  that  they 
did  not  feel  the  repetitions  wearisome,  they  could  not  hear 
too  often  the  hard-won  truths  that  had  set  them  free.   We 
have  a  glimpse  of  this  point  of  view  in  one  of  Asoka's 
Edicts,  where  the  Emperor  says : 

"  Certain  phrases  have  been  uttered  again  and  again  by 
reason  of  the  honeyed  sweetness  of  such  and  such  a  topic, 
in  the  hope  that  the  people  may  act  up  to  them." 
The  early  Buddhists  had  no  wish  to  make  their  scriptures 
interesting,  and  it  is  very  true  that  they  'have  but  one 
taste.'  At  the  same  time  it  is  most  likely  that  this 
extremely  serious  and  indeed  heavy  style,  made  eloquent 
only  by  its  very  seriousness — it  is  not  to  be  denied 
that  the  method  of  line  upon  line  has  a  certain  cumulative 
impressiveness,  a  kind  of  noble  austerity  and  patience,  a 
'  sublime  monotony ' — really  reflects  the  manner  of  speech 
of  the  Buddha  himself.  For  Gautama  is  not — like  Jesus 
— a  poet  and  a  mystic,  but  a  psychologist :  ^  he  does  not 

^  If  Gautama  was  indeed  a  mystic,  as  the  MaJiayanists  claim,  it  is  then 
to  Buddhaghosha  and  other  of  the  PaH  authors  whom  we  must  regard  as 
chiefly  responsible  for  '  Pali  Buddhism.' 
274 


Plate  U  a74 

THE  BUDDHA  TEACHING 

Gilt  bronze,  Laos,  in  Gupta  style,  but  probably  mediaeval 
Collection  of  Mr  Victor  Golonbew 


The  Pali  Canon 

speak  to  uneducated  fishermen,  but  to  practised  meta- 
physicians, and  in  an  atmosphere  of  controversy:  he 
makes  no  personal  appeal,  he  speaks  with  well-considered 
purpose  rather  than  enthusiasm  or  fervour,  and  he  is 
concerned  to  leave  no  loophole  for  possible  or  deliberate 
misunderstandings.  He  feels,  indeed,  some  apprehension 
lest  in  future  the  most  profound  sermons  should  be 
neglected  in  favour  of  more  artistic  and  attractive  com- 
positions : 

"Some  there  are,"  he  says,  '*  who  hearken  willingly  to 
the  works  of  followers  of  mine  who  are  poets,  poetasters, 
litt67'ateurs,  or  mystics  .  .  .  and  who  allow  the  sermons 
of  the  Tathagata,  of  profound  import,  transcendent,  and 
devoted  to  the  doctrine  of  the  Void,  to  be  forgotten." 
We  may  thus  believe  that  the  more  poetical  and  literary 
books  were  only  little  by  little  and  with  some  difficulty 
admitted  to  the  canon ;  and  this  is  probably  the  explana- 
tion of  the  fact  that  they  are  for  the  most  part  gathered 
together  in  one  Nikaya,  the  KJmddaka,  which  was  most 
likely  included  in  the  authoritative  scripture  at  a  com- 
paratively late  date,  though  of  course  it  contains  abund- 
ance of  ancient  matter  side  by  side  with  the  younger. 
The  second  characteristic  which  we  remark  in  the  Suttas 
so  far  discussed  is  the  dialectic  method  of  the  Buddha's 
argument.  The  manner  of  his  speech  is  always  courteous 
and  friendly: 

'*  The  method  followed  is  always  the  same.  Gautama  puts 
himself  as  far  as  possible  in  the  mental  position  of  the 
questioner.  He  attacks  none  of  his  cherished  convictions. 
He  accepts  as  the  starting-point  of  his  own  exposition  the 
desirability  of  the  act  or  condition  prized  by  his  opponent. 
...  He  even  adopts  the  very  phraseology  of  the  ques- 
tioner.    And  then,  partly  by  putting  a  new  and  (from  the 

275 


Buddha  &f^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Buddhist  point  of  view)  a  higher  meaning  into  the  words  ; 
partly  by  an  appeal  to  such  ethical  conceptions  as  are 
common  ground  between  them ;  he  gradually  leads  his 
opponent  up  to  his  conclusion.  This  is,  of  course,  always 
Arahatship."  ^ 

This  is  the  method  of  the  Socratic  dialogue ;  and  we  may 
also  take  it  that  in  the  Dialogues  extant  we  have  at  least 
as  much  of  the  actual  teaching  of  Gautama  preserved, 
as  Plato  gives  of  the  teaching  of  Socrates.  The  method, 
however,  presupposes  an  acquaintance  with  the  point  of 
view  of  the  Buddha's  opponents,  since,  as  Professor  Rhys 
Davids  justly  remarks,  the  argtwientuin  ad  ho7ninem  can 
never  be  quite  the  same  as  a  general  statement  made 
without  reference  to  the  opposite  view.  There  is  also  the 
disadvantage  that  the  argument  is  made  to  lead  to  a  fore- 
gone conclusion,  and  though  the  logical  sequence  may  be 
indisputable,  the  twisting  of  words  in  a  new  sense  some- 
times '  corners '  the  opponent  without  meeting  his  real 
position.  We  do  not  really  hear  both  sides  of  the  case. 
As  Professor  Oldenberg  truly  comments :  "  Those  who 
converse  with  Buddha  are  good  for  nothing  else  but 
simply  to  say  /Yes,'  and  to  be  eventually  converted,  if 
they  have  not  yet  been  converted."  Subject  to  this 
limitation,  and  apart  from  the  wearisome  repetitions,  we 
can  nevertheless  recognize  that  the  Dialogues  are  skil- 
fully constructed  and  couched  in  language  of  restraint 
and  dignity. 

A  third  special  characteristic  of  the  Suttas  is  the  constant 
use  of  simile  and  parable.  A  simile,  indeed,  is  not  an 
argument;  but  it  often  serves  better  to  convince  the 
listener  than  any  sequence  of  close  reasoning.  Many  of 
the  similes  are  well-found,  and  additional  to  their  value 
^  Rhys  Davids,  Dialogues  of  the  Buddha,  i,  p.  206. 
276 


The  Pali  Canon 

for  edification,  they  throw  a  strong  light  on  the  every- 
day life  of  ancient  India,  very  welcome  to  the  historian 
of  manners.  Those  which  refer  to  the  crafts  are  of  special 
interest :  we  read,  for  example : 

"Just,  O  king,  as  a  clever  potter  or  his  apprentice  could 
make,  could  succeed  in  getting  out  of  properly  prepared 
clay  any  shape  of  vessel  he  wanted  to  have,  or  an  ivory 
carver  out  of  ivory,  or  a  goldsmith  out  of  gold :  such, 
O  king,  is  the  Skill  which  is  an  immediate  fruit  of  the 
life  of  a  recluse." — Samatma-phala  Stitta. 
And  with  reference  to  the  practice  of  breathing  exercises, 
and  mindfulness : 

"  Even  as  a  skilful  turner,  or  turner's  apprentice,  drawing 
his  string  at  length,  or  drawing  it  out  short,  is  conscious 
that  he  is  doing  one  or  the  other,  so  let  a  Brother  practise 
inhaling  and  exhaling." — Mahd  Satthipatthd7ia  Sutta. 
A  favourite  simile  is  that  of  the  oil-lamp : 
"Just,  O  Brethren,  as  an  oil-lamp  burns  oil  and  wick,  and 
a  man  from  time  to  time  adds  more  oil  and  renews  the 
wick,   this  oil-lamp  thus  fed  with  fuel  burns  for  a  much 
longer  time — so.   Brethren,   waxes   Craving  in  the  man 
who  finds  his  pleasure  in  things  of   the  world,    that   in 
sooth  are  nought  but  bonds." — Samyutta  Nikdya. 
Another  favourite  simile  is  that  of  the  lotus,  for 
"'Just  as   the  lotus    born  of  watery   mud,  grows  in  the 
water,  rises  above  the  water,  and  is  not  defiled  by  it :  so 
have  I  arisen  in  the  world,  and  passed  beyond  the  world, 
and  am    not   defiled   by  the  world,'  says  Gautama." — 
Samyutta   Nikdya. 

The  lotus  has  thus  become  a  symbol  of  purity  ;  and  in 
iconography,  when  an  apparitional  character  had  been 
given  to  the  figure  of  the  Buddha,  and  in  the  case  of 
other  superhuman  beings,  the  lotus  pedestal  or  seat  is  a 

277 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

mark  of  other-worldly  and  divine  origin  or  nature.  Need- 
less to  say  the  lotus,  in  literature,  is  the  source  of  many 
other  similes  and  metaphors,  for  the  most  part  not 
specifically  Buddhist. 

In  general  also,  the  lotus  stands  for  anything  that  is 
excellent  and  well-liked : 

"The   boy  Vipassi,   Brethren,  became   the  darling   and 
beloved  of  the  people,  even  as  a  blue  or  rose  or  white 
lotus  is  dear  to  and  beloved  of  all,  so  that  he  was  literally 
carried  about  from  lap  to  lap." — Mahdpadana  Sutta. 
In  another  place  the  true  spiritual  life  is  compared  to 
a  lute,  of  which  the  strings  must  be  neither  too  loosely 
nor  too  tightly  stretched ;  by  this  is  indicated  the  internal 
balance  and  harmony  of  the  ideal  character.     The  teaching 
of  salvation,  again,  is  compared  to  the  healing  work  of 
the  physician,  who  removes  from  a  wound  the  poisoned 
arrow,    and   applies   the   curing    herbs.     Sometimes  the 
similes   are   humorous,    as  when  it  is   pointed  out  that 
if  a  man  should  milk  a  cow  by  the  horns,  he  would  get 
no  milk;  or  if   one  should  fill  a  vessel  with  sand  and 
water,  and  churn  it  ever  so  much,  sesamum  oil  would 
never  be  produced ;  just  so  a  monk  will  never  reach  his 
goal  unless  he  goes  the  right  way  about  it. 
In  other  cases  the  parable  is  not  merely  valueless    as 
argument,  but  absolutely  futile.     When,  for  example,  it 
is  desired  to  expose  the  social  and  spiritual  pretensions 
of   the    Brahmans,    Gautama   inquires   if   a   fire   should 
be  lighted  by  a  Brahman,  a  Kshattriya,  a  Vaishya  and  a 
Sudra :  would  the  fires  lit  by  Brahmans  and  Kshattriyas 
alone  give  light  and  heat,  or  would  the  fires  lit  by  out- 
casts, hunters   and  sweepers,   not  also  yield  their  light 
and   heat?     The  king  with  whom  Gautama  speaks  can 
naturally  only  answer  that  the  fires  will  not  differ  in  their 
278 


The  Pali  Canon 

properties.  But  what  has  this  to  do  with  a  discussion  for 
or  aeainst  the  Brahmanical  scheme  of  social  differentiation  ? 
That  all  men  have  many  things  in  common  does  not 
prove  that  all  men  are  alike  in  every  particular,  nor  does 
it  disprove  the  advantage  of  hereditary  culture:  the 
whole  discussion,  like  so  many  others  which  turn  upon 
analogy,  is  neither  here  nor  there. 

The  contents  of  the  Khuddaka  Nikdya  are  very  varied. 
Most  of  the  works  in  this  collection  of  aphorisms,  songs, 
poems,  and  fables  have  some  artistic  and  literary  as  well 
as  an  edifiying  character,  and  thus  it  has  the  greatest 
importance  in  the  literary  history  of  India.  Here  also 
greater  relative  stress  is  laid  on  ethics,  and  the  more 
profound  doctrine  occupies  less  space.  The  Mangala 
Sntta,  for  example,  mentions  the  honouring  of  parents 
and  the  cherishing  of  wife  and  children  as  amongst  the 
most  auspicious  actions.  It  is,  however,  the  Dhammapada 
in  which  the  ethical  aphorisms  are  chiefly  assembled. 
This  book  is  better  known  in  Europe  than  any  other 
Buddhist  scripture,  and  has  been  often  translated.  It 
is,  indeed,  worthy  of  the  notice  it  has  attracted,  and  of 
the  eulogy  of  Oldenberg : 

"  For  the  elucidation  of  Buddhism  nothing  better  could 
happen  than  that,  at  the  very  outset  of  Buddhist  studies, 
there  should  be  presented  to  the  student  by  an  auspicious 
hand  the  Dhammapada,  that  most  beautiful  and  richest 
collection  of  proverbs,  to  which  anyone  who  is  determined 
to  know  Buddhism  must  over  and  over  again  return." 
This  proverbial  wisdom  gives  a  true  picture  of  Buddhist 
thought  and  feeling,  but  expressed  in  terms  of  emotion 
and  poetry  which  lend  to  the  themes  of  transcicnce  and  to 
the  formulae  of  the  psychologist  a  tragic  poignancy  that 
is  often  lacking  in  the  set  dialogues, 

279 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

"  How  can   ye  be  merry,  how  can   ye   indulge   desire  ? 

Evermore  the  flames  burn.    Darkness  surrounds  you  :  will 

ye  not  seek  the  light  ? 

"  Man   gathers   flowers ;   his   heart   is   set   on  pleasure. 

Death   comes  upon  him,   like  the  floods  of  water  on  a 

village,  and  sweeps  him  away. 

'*  Man  gathers  flowers ;  his  heart  is  set  on  pleasure.     The 

Destroyer  brings  the  man  of  insatiable  desire  within  his 

clutch. 

''  Neither  in  the  region  of  the  air,  nor  in  the  depths  of  the 

sea,  nor  if  thou  piercest  into  the  clefts  of  the  mountains, 

wilt  thou  find  any  place  on  this  earth  where  the  hand  of 

death  will  not  reach  thee. 

"  From  merriment  cometh  sorrow  :  from  merriment  cometh 

fear.     Whosoever  is  free  from  merriment,  for  him  there  is 

no  sorrow  :  whence  should  fear  reach  him  ? 

"  From  love  cometh  sorrow  ^ :  from  love  cometh  fear : 

whosoever  is  free  from  love  for  him  there  is  no  sorrow : 

whence  should  fear  reach  him  ? 

"  Whoso  looketh  down    upon   the  world,  as  though  he 

gazed  on  a  mere  bubble  or  a  dream,  him  the  ruler  Death 

beholdeth  not. 

"  Whosoever  hath  traversed  the  evil,  trackless  path  of  the 

Samsara,  who  hath  pushed  on  to  the  end,  hath  reached 

the  shore,  rich  in  meditation,  free  from  desire,  free  from 

hesitancy,  who,  freed  from  being,  hath  found  rest,  him 

I  call  a  true  Brahman." 

^  This  truth,  which  has  so  deeply  penetrated  Indian  thought,  is  balanced 
by  a  recognition  of  the  impossibility  that  the  majority  of  men  should 
for  fear  of  sorrow  refrain  from  love,  and  expressed  with  tragic  beauty 
in  a  well-known  Indian  refrain,  which  may  be  translated — 

Belovid^  had  I  knozvn  that  love  brings  pain, 

I  must  have  proclaimed,  with  beat  of  drum,  that  ?ione  should  love. 

280 


The  Pilli  Canon 

The  thought  of  transcience  constantly  overshadows  every 

other : 

"Those  bleached  bones,  which  are  thrown   out  yonder, 

like  gourds  in  the  autumn,  seeing  those,  how  may  any 

man  be  merry  ? 

"  Esteeming  this  body  like  a  bubble,  regarding  it  as  a 

mirage,  breaking  the  tempter's  flower-shafts,  press  on  to 

the  bourne  where  the  monarch  Death  shall  never  see  thee 


more." 


Those  who  have  thus  attained  exclaim : 
"  In  perfect  joy  we  live,  without  enemy  in  this  world  of 
enmity ;  among  men  filled  with  enmity  we  dwell  without 
enmity. 

"  In  perfect  joy  we  live,  hale  among   the  sick ;  among 
sick  men  we  dwell  without  sickness." 
We  read  also  : 

"  All  men  tremble  at  punishment,  all  men  love  life ; 
remember  that  thou  art  like  unto  them,  and  do  not  slay 
nor  cause  to  slay. 

"Victory  breeds  hatred,  for  the  conquered  is  unhappy. 
He  who  has  given  up  both  victory  and  defeat,  he  the 
contented,  is  happy. 

"  '  He  abused  me,  he  beat  me,  he  defeated  me,  he  robbed 
me,'  in  those  who  do  not  harbour  such  thoughts  hatred 
will  cease. 

"  For  hatred  does  not  cease  by  hatred  at  anytime  :  hatred 
ceases  by  love,  this  is  an  old  rule." 

It  should  be  noticed  that  the  Dhaniuiapada  is  an  antho- 
logy, rather  than  a  single  work  ;  many  of  the  sayings  can 
be  closely  paralleled  in  other  Indian  books  such  as  the 
Mahdbhdrata  or  Hitopadesa,  and  not  more  than  half  can 
be  regarded  as  distinctively  Buddhist. 
The    Uddna   and    the  ItiviUtaka  consist   of   prose   and 

281 


Buddha  (Sf  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

verse,  and  contain  a  collection  of  sayings  of  the  Buddha. 
The  simple  ethical  aspect  of  the  Dhamma,  for  example, 
is  given  as  follows  : 

"  To  speak  no  ill,  to  injure  not, 

To  be  restrained  according  to  the  precepts, 

To  be  temperate  in  food. 

To  sleep  alone, 

To  dwell  on  lofty  thoughts, 

This  is  the  Law  of  the  Buddha." 
The  StUta-nipdta  is  a  collection  of  five  Suttas  wholly  in 
verse.  The  Vasettha  Sulta,  for  example,  returns  to  the 
old  question  of  what  constitutes  a  Brahman,  whether 
birth  or  character.  In  connexion  with  this  discussion, 
there  is  a  remarkable  passage  affirming  the  unity  of  the 
human  species,  a  view  in  accord  with  most  (though  not 
all)  of  modern  authorities.  The  passage  runs,  after 
mentioning  the  marks  of  distinction  between  quadrupeds, 
serpents,  birds,  etc. : 

"  As  in  these  species  the  marks  that  constitute  species  are 
abundant,  so  in  men  the  marks  that  constitute  species  are 
not  abundant. 

"  Not  as  regards  their  hair,  head,  ears,  eyes,  mouth,  nose, 
lips  or  brows,  .  .  .  nor  as  regards  their  hands,  feet,  palms, 
nails,  calves,  thighs,  colour,  or  voice  are  there  marks  that 
constitute  species  as  in  other  species. 
"  Difference  there  is  in  beings  endowed  with  bodies,  but 
amongst  men  this  is  not  the  case ;  the  difference  amongst 
men  is  only  nominal." 
And,  therefore — 

"  Not  by  birth  is  one  a  Brahman,  nor  is  one  by  birth  no 
Brahman  .  .  .  but  by  effort,  by  religious  living,  by  self- 
restraint  and  by  temperance,  by  this  one  is  a  Brahman." 
Amongst  all  works  of  the  KJmddaka  Nikdyay  however,  the 
282 


The  Pali  Canon 

*'  Psalms  of  the  Brethren  and  Sisters  "  {Thci'd-thci'i-gdtha) 
stand  foremost  in  literary  and  human  interest.  In  skilful 
craftsmanship  and  beauty  these  songs  are  worthy  to  be  set 
beside  the  hymns  of  the  Rig  Veda,  and  the  lyrical  poems 
of  Kalidasa  and  Jayadeva.  Each  of  the  songs  is  ascribed 
by  name  to  some  member  of  the  Sangha  who  attained  to 
Arahatta  in  the  lifetime  of  Gautama,  and  the  later  com- 
mentary often  adds  a  few  words  by  way  of  a  biography  of 
the  author.  But  we  cannot  place  very  much  reliance  on 
the  names,  although  their  citation  does  not  mislead  us  in 
presupposing  a  great  variety  of  authors  in  this  collec- 
tion. It  is  interesting  to  note  that  analysis  reveals  certain 
psychological  differentiation  as  between  the  songs  of  the 
Brethren  and  those  of  the  Sisters :  in  the  latter  there  is  a 
more  personal  note,  and  more  of  anecdote;  in  the  former 
more  of  the  inner  life,  and  more  descriptions  of  natural 
beauty.  The  burden  of  all  the  songs  is  the  calm  delight, 
the  peace  beyond  words  to  which  they  have  attained,  who 
have  left  the  world  and  are  free  from  desires  and  from 
resentment ;  each  Psalm,  as  it  were,  is  a  little  song  of 
triumph — like  the  Buddha's  song  of  the  builder  of  the 
house,  which  is  here  ascribed  to  the  Arahat  Sivaka — 
pertinent  to  the  individual  experience  of  the  one  that 
speaks. 

These  songs  are  a  personal  expression  of  all  those  ideals 
and  aims  which  are  spoken  of  in  the  more  '  profound  * 
texts.  On  the  part  of  the  Brethren,  very  often  the  theme 
is  one  of  extreme  misogyny :  the  true  hero  is  he  who  bars 
his  heart  from  '  all  that  emanates  from  woman.'  More 
than  one  picture  of  a  woman's  corpse  in  the  charnel  field 
is  presented  with  unpleasant  detail ;  and  there  at  least  a 
woman  becomes  of  some  use,  for  her  decaying  body 
teaches  the  lesson   of  disgust;  nowhere  else  can  she  be 

283 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

aught  but  a  fetter  and  a  hindrance  to  those  who  would 
set  themselves  to  righteous  duties.  It  would  perhaps  be 
unfair  to  contrast  this  point  of  view  with  the  Brahmanical 
ideal  of  marriage  as  undertaken  by  man  and  woman  pre- 
cisely for  the  joint  performance  of  social  and  religious 
duties ;  for  we  are  here  concerned  with  monasticism,  and 
Brahmanical  ascetic  literature  can  provide  its  own  mis- 
ogynistic  texts  to  compare  with  those  of  Buddhism.  The 
following  may  serve  as  an  example  of  the  Thera's  songs :  * 
Of  Candana  it  is  said  that  when  a  child  was  born  to  him, 
he  left  his  home  for  the  Order,  and  dwelt  in  the  forest. 
One  day,  hearing  that  he  was  engaged  in  meditation  in 
the  charnel  field,  his  wife  endeavoured  to  win  him  back 
to  the  household  life.  It  was  in  vain;  and  this  was  the 
Arahat's  '  witness  ' : 

In  golden  gear  bedecked,  a  troop  of  maids 
Attending  in  her  train,  bearing  the  babe 
Upon  her  hip,  my  wife  drew  near  to  me. 
I  marked  her  coming,  mother  of  my  child. 
In  brave  array,  like  snare  of  Mara  laid. 
Thereat  arose  in  me  the  deeper  thought : 
Attention  to  the  fact  and  to  the  cause. 
The  m,isery  of  it  all  was  manifest ; 
Distaste.,  indifference.,  the  mind  possessed  ; 
And  so  my  heart  was  set  at  liberty. 
O  see  the  seemly  order  of  the  Norm  ! 
The  Threefold  Wisdom  have  I  made  my  oivn. 
And  all  the  Buddha  bids  me  do  is  do7ie. 

1  The  translations  are  quoted  from  the  admirable  versions  of  Mrs  Rhys 
Davids  {Psalms  of  the  Brethren,  1913).     The  much  more  interesting 
Nature  poems  of  the  Brethren  are  quoted  above,  p.  166  seq. 
284 


The  Pali  Canon 

The    following    is    an    extract    from     the    "  Psalm    of 
Revata": 

Since  1  weyit  forth  from  home  to  homeless  life, 
Neer  have  I  harboured  conscious  ivish  or  plan 
Un- Ariy an  or  linked  with  enrnity.  .   .  . 
With  thought  of  death  I  dally  not,  7ior  yet 
Delight  in  living.     I  aivait  the  hour 
Like  any  hireling  who  hath  done  his  task. 
With  thought  of  death  I  dally  not,  7ior  yet 
Delight  in  living.     I  await  the  hour 
With  mind  discerning  and  with  heedfulness. 
The  Master  hath  7ny  fealty  and  love, 
Aiid  all  the  Buddha  s  bidding  hath  been  done. 
Low  have  I  laid  the  heavy  load  I  bore, 
Cause  for  rebirth  is  fotnid  in  me  no  more. 
The  Good  for  which  I  bade  the  world  farewell. 
And  left  the  home  to  lead  the  homeless  life. 
That  highest  Good  have  I  accomplished, 
And  every  bond  and  fetter  is  destroyed. 

Far  more  poetic  than  the  verses  inspired  by  the  Brethrens' 
fear  of  woman  as  the  subtlest  form  of  worldly  snare,  are 
those  of  the  Sisters  themselves,  reflecting  on  the  passing 
away  of  their  own  youth  and  beauty,  and  pointing  for 
themselves  the  lesson  of  transcience ;  and  amongst  these 
none  is  more  interesting  than  that  of  the  courtesan 
Ambapall,  whose  generosity  to  the  Order  we  have 
already  noticed ;  she  was  converted  by  the  preaching 
of  her  own  son,  and  studying  the  law  of  impcrmanence 
as  illustrated  in  her  own  ageing  body,  she  uttered 
the  following  verses  (nineteen  in  all,  of  which  I  quote 
five) : 

285 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Glossy  and  black  as  the  doivn  of  the  bee  my  curls  once 

clustered. 
They  with  the  waste  of  the  yea^-s  are  liker  to  hempen  or 

bark  cloth. 
Such  and  not  othei'imse  runneth  the  rune,  the  zvord  of  the 

Soothsayer. 

Dense  as  a  grove  well  planted,  and  comely  with  comb,  pin 

and  parting. 
All  zvith  the  waste  of  the  years  dishevelled  the  fair  plaits 

and  fallen 
Such  and  not  otherwise  runneth  the  rune,  the  zvord  of  the 

Soothsayer. 

Lovely  the  lines  of  my  cars  as  the  delicate  worlc  of  the 

goldsmith. 
They  ivith  the  ivaste  of  years  are  seamed  with  zvr inkles 

and  pendent. 
Such  and  not  otherwise  runnctli  the  rune,  the  zvoi^d  of  the 

Soothsayer. 

Full  and  lovely  in  contour  rose  of  yore  the  small  bi-easts 

of  me. 
They  with  the  waste  of  the  years  droop  shrunken  as  skins 

without  water. 
So  and  not  otherwise  runneth  the  rune,  the  word  of  the 

Soothsayer. 

Such  hath  this  body  been.     Now  age-weary  and  weak  and 

tcnsightly, 
Home  of  manifold  ills ;  old  hotise  zohence  the  mortar  is 

dropping. 
So  and  not  otherwise  runneth  the  rune,  the  word  of  the 

Soothsayer. 
286 


The  Pali  Canon 

*'  And  inasmuch  as  the  Therl,  by  the  visible  signs  of  im- 
permanence  in  her  own  person,  discerned  impermancnce 
in  all  phenomena  of  the  three  planes,  and  bearing  that  in 
mind,  brought  into  relief  the  signs  of  111  (dukkha)  and  of 
No-soul  (anatta),  she,  making  clear  her  insight  in  her  Path- 
progress,  attained  Arahantship."  ^ 

The  words  of  Sundarl-Nanda,  another  of  the  Sisters, 
resume  the  same  train  of  thought : 

Now  for  the  body  care  I  never  more,  and  all  my  conscious- 
ness is  passion- free. 

Keen  with  tmfettered  zeal,  detached,  calm  and  serene  I 
taste  Nibbands  peace. 

Another  composite  work,  and  one  of  the  greatest  signifi- 
cance for  literary  and  social  history,  is  the  book  oijdtakas, 
or  histories  of  the  previous  births  of  Gautama.  Originally 
consisting  only  of  verses,  to  which  the  reciter  must  have 
added  a  verbal  explanation,  they  are  now  preserved  in  the 
form  of  the  Pali  Jdtakavannana,  where  the  verses  are 
enshrined  in  a  formal  framework  of  which  the  chief  parts 
are  the  introductory  episode  and  the  concluding  identifica- 
tion of  the  characters ;  within  these  is  the  story  proper, 
consisting  of  prose  and  verse.  Each  of  these  four 
elements,  as  Professor  Rhys  Davids  points  out,  has  had  a 
separate  history ;  the  old  Jataka  book  contained  the  verses 
only;  the  necessary  oral  commentary  which  accompanied 
the  quotation  of  the  verses  was  subsequently  written  down 
and  forms  the  prose  story,  which  is  summed  up,  as  it 
were,  and  clinched   by  the  old  verses,   and   finally   the 

^  Mrs  Rhys  Davids  comments  :  "  It  is  interesting  to  find  these  two 
ancient  institutions,  the  hetaira  of  the  community  and  the  Wise  Woman, 
with  her  monopoly  of  seeing  things  as  they  have  been,  are,  or  will  be, 
combined  in  one  and  the^ame  poem." 

287 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

scholastic  framework  was  completed.  The  Jatakas  in  this 
final  form  were  not  completed  before  the  fifth  century  a.d. 
However,  the  stories  so  preserved,  we  have  every  reason 
to  believe,  closely  follow  an  old  tradition  handed  down 
from  at  least  the  third  century  B.C. ;  for  a  considerable 
number  of  these  stories  are  illustrated  in  the  well-known 
Bharhut  sculptures,  and  are  there  labelled  with  their 
names,  and  in  one  case  a  half  verse  is  also  quoted.  We 
learn  from  these  sculptures  that  folk-tales  and  secular 
fables  were  adapted  to  an  edifying  purpose  quite  early  in 
the  history  of  Buddhism  precisely  as  popular  and  secular 
art  is  adapted  to  Buddhist  purposes  in  the  sculpture  them- 
selves. 

Beside  this,  we  have  to  observe  that  although  the  stories 
are  now  converted  to  the  purposes  of  Buddhist  edification, 
they  belong  rather  to  Indian  than  to  specifically  Buddhist 
literature,  and  very  few  have  a  purely  Buddhist  origin. 
In  point  of  fact  the  rule  of  the  Order  forbids  the  Brethren 
to  listen  to  stories  of  kings  and  queens,  wars,  women,  gods 
and  fairies,  and  so  forth,  and  some  little  time  must  have 
elapsed  before  the  Buddhists  could  have  come  to  believe 
that  the  Jatakas  were  really  related  by  the  Buddha  himself. 
Then  again,  in  the  very  fact  of  the  stress  that  is  laid  upon 
the  doctrine  of  the  Bodhisattva,  and  in  the  emphasis  laid 
upon  the  old  '  resolve '  of  the  Brahman  Sumedha  (in  the 
Jataka),  as  well  as  in  the  introductory  and  other  references 
to  the  twenty-four  '  previous  Buddhas,'  the  Jataka  book 
shows  a  considerable  development  of  Buddhist  scholas- 
ticism and  theology,  and  might  very  well  be  described  as 
a  Mahayanist  scripture,  notwithstanding  it  is  included  in 
the  Pali  canon.  Many  of  the  stories  are  older  than 
Buddhism,  and  notwithstanding  that  in  their  Buddhist 
garb  they  do  not  date  from  the  time  of  Gautama,  they 
288 


The  Pali  Canon 

give  us  a  true  picture  of  old  Indian  life  of  about  the  fifth 
century  B.C.  Apart  from  their  literary  value,  this  fact 
alone  makes  the  Jataka  collection  of  great  interest ;  beside 
which,  this  is  the  "  most  reliable,  the  most  complete,  and 
the  most  ancient  collection  of  folk-lore  now  extant  in  any 
literature  in  the  world." 

The  Jatakas  vary  greatly  both  in  subject  and  in  literary 
merit,  and  also  in  length  ;  some  are  dry  and  witless,  others 
point  a  merely  common-sense  moral,  others  elaborate 
the  systematic  doctrine  of  the  previous  Buddhas  and  the 
character  of  the  Bodhisattva  as  exemplifying  the  ten  great 
virtues  {Pdra7iiitds\  while  yet  others  are  works  of  the 
finest  art,  setting  forth  with  poignant  intensity  the  drama 
of  human  emotion  :  some  are  fragments  of  epics,  with  the 
flavour  of  aristocracy,  others  are  the  work  of  unimagina- 
tive misogynists,  others  are  popular  ballads,  and  many 
are  little  more  than  nursery  tales.  All  this  is  easily 
explained  by  the  composite  authorship  of  the  collection, 
and  the  variety  of  class  and  occupation  of  those  from 
whom  the  Order  of  the  Buddhist  Wanderers  was 
recruited. 

Amongst  the  simplest  stories  there  are  many  fables  of 
world-wide  distribution,  like  the  story  of  the  ass  in  the 
lion's  skin,  stories  of  grateful  beasts  and  thankless  men; 
here  also  are  tales  of  demons  and  fairies,  cannibal  kings 
and  masters  of  magic,  to  delight  the  hearts  of  any  child  or 
childlike  people.  On  the  other  hand  are  the  formal  epics, 
amongst  which  is  the  recension  of  some  old  Rama  ballad, 
such  as  constituted  the  basis  of  the  RdmCiyana.  But 
here  we  shall  quote  only  one  Jataka  at  some  length,  the 
CJiadda7itii  Jataka,  which  is  perhaps  the  most  beautiful, 
and  add  also  a  short  summary  of  another  which  is  a  great 
favourite,  the    Vcssantara  Jataka,  which  sets  forth  the 

T  289 


Buddha  &P  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

'  supernatural  generosity '  of  the  Bodhisattva  in  his  last 
incarnation  before  the  attainment  of  Buddhahood. 

Chaddanta  Jdtaka 

Introductory  episode:  A  well-born  girl  of  Savatthi, 
recognizing  the  misery  of  the  worldly  life,  had  adopted 
the  homeless  state,  and  was  one  day  seated  with  others 
of  the  Sisters,  hearing  the  Master's  teaching;  and  the 
thought  came  into  heart,  '  Was  I  in  some  former  life 
an  attendant  of  his  wives  ? '  Then  she  remembered  that 
in  the  time  of  the  elephant  Chaddanta,  she  herself  had  been 
his  wife,  and  her  heart  was  filled  with  joy.  But  '  Was  I 
well  or  ill-disposed  to  him  ?  '  she  thought,  '  for  the  greater 
part  of  women  are  ill-disposed  to  their  lords.'  Then 
she  remembered  that  she  had  borne  a  grudge  against 
Chaddanta,  and  had  sent  a  hunter  with  a  poisoned  arrow 
to  take  his  tusks.  Then  her  grief  awoke,  and  her  heart 
burned,  and  she  burst  into  sobs  and  wept  aloud.  On 
seeing  that,  the  Master  smiled,  and  being  asked  by  the 
company  of  the  Brethren,  'What,  Sir,  was  the  cause  of 
your  smiling,'  he  said,  '  Brethren,  this  young  Sister  wept 
for  an  injury  she  did  me  long  ago.'  And  so  saying  he  told 
a  story  of  the  past. 

Once  on  a  time  the  Bodhisatta  was  born  as  the  son 
of  the  chief  of  a  herd  of  elephants  in  the  Himalayas. 
He  was  pure  white,  with  red  feet  and  face;  when  he 
grew  up  he  became  the  chief  of  a  great  herd,  and  he 
worshipped  private  Buddhas.  His  two  chief  queens  were 
CuUasubhadda  and  Mahasubhadda.  One  year  it  was 
reported,  '  The  great  sal-grove  is  in  flower ' ;  and  with 
all  his  herd  he  went  to  take  his  pleasure  there.  As  he 
went  along  he  struck  a  sal  tree  with  his  forehead,  and 
because  CuUasubhadda  was  standing  to  windward,  twigs 
290 


Chaddanta  Jataka 

and  dry  leaves  and  red  ants  fell  on  her,  while  Maha- 
subhadda  stood  to  leeward,  so  that  flowers  and  pollen  and 
green  leaves  fell  on  her.  Cullasubhadda  thought,  "He 
let  the  flowers  and  pollen  fall  on  his  favourite  wife,  and 
the  twigs  and  red  ants  on  me,' and  she  bore  him  a  grudge. 
Upon  another  occasion,  when  a  lotus  with  seven  shoots 
had  been  offered  to  him,  he  presented  it  to  Mahasub- 
hadda. 

Then  Cullasubhadda  was  still  more  estranged,  and  she 
went  to  a  shrine  of  private  Buddhas  and  made  offerings 
of  wild  fruits,  and  prayed:  'Hereafter,  when  I  pass 
away,  I  would  be  reborn  as  the  daughter  of  a  king, 
that  I  may  become  the  queen  of  the  King  of  Benares. 
Then  shall  I  be  dear  to  him,  and  may  work  my  will, 
and  I  will  have  him  to  send  a  hunter  with  a  poisoned 
arrow  to  kill  this  elephant  and  bring  me  his  sixfold  tusks.' 
And  in  time  to  come  she  becomes  the  chief  queen  of  the 
King  of  Benares.  She  remembers  her  former  life,  and 
thinks :  '  My  prayer  has  been  fulfilled.'  She  feigns  sickness, 
and  persuades  the  king  to  grant  her  a  boon,  which  alone 
will  restore  her  health  and  spirits;  what  the  boon  is  she 
will  tell  when  all  the  king's  huntsmen  are  assembled.  It 
is  that  some  one  of  them  should  brino^  her  the  tusks  of 
Chaddanta.  She  opens  a  window  and  points  to  the 
Himalayas  in  the  North  and  says: 

There  dwells  invincible  in  inicht. 
This  elephant,  six-tusked  and  white. 
Lord  of  a  herd  eight  thousand  strong 
Whose  tusks  are  like  to  chariot  poles^ 
And  wind-swift  they  to  giiard  or  strike  / 
If  they  should  see  a  child  of  ma7t 
Their  aftger  should  destroy  him  utterly, 

291 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

and  she  beheld  in  her  heart  the  very  spot  where  he  was 
taking  his  pleasure,  how 

Fresh  from  his  bath  and  lotits-wreathed. 

He  ?navcs  along  the  homeward  track. 

Vast  is  his  brake  and  lily  white, 

And  the7'e  before  him,  walks  a  dear-loved  qtieen. 

Of  all  the  huntsmen,  one  by  name  Sonuttara,  who  was  a 
hideous  lout  and  big  and  strong,  undertook  the  task,  and 
being  furnished  with  all  needful  implements,  he  set  forth 
on   his  way.     It   needed  seven  years  of  weary  going  to 
reach  Chaddanta's  haunts ;  but    no  sooner   come   there, 
than  Sonuttara  dug  a  pit  and  covered  it  with  logs  and 
grass,  and  donning  the  yellow  robes  of  a  man  of  religion, 
and  taking  his  bow  and  poisoned  arrow,  he  hid  himself 
and   lay  in  wait.     Presently  Chaddanta   passed  by,  and 
Sonuttara  wounded  him   with  the  poisoned  arrow.     But 
the  elephant  subduing  his  feelings  of  resentment,  asked 
the  hunter,  '  Why  have  you  wounded  me  ?  is  it  for  your 
own  ends  or  to  satisfy  the  will  of  another?  '     The  hunter 
answered    that  Subhadda,    the   consort  of   the   King   of 
Benares,  had  sent  him  to  secure  the  tusks.     Chaddanta 
reflected,  '  It  is  not  that  she  wishes  for  the  tusks,  but  she 
desires  my  death ; '  and  he  said : 

Co77te  now,  thou  hunter,  and  before  I  die 
Saw  through  my  ivory  tusks  ; 

And  bid  the  jealous  queen  rejoice 

'■Here  ai'e  the  tusks^  the  elephant  is  dead' 

So  Chaddanta  bowed  his  head,  and  Sonuttara  began  to 
saw  the  tusks  ;  and  when  he  could  not  cut  them,  the 
great  elephant  took  the  saw  in  his  trunk  and  moved  it  to 
and  fro  till  the  tusks  were  severed.  Then  he  gave  up 
292 


Chaddanta  Jataka 

the  tusks  and  said,  '  I  do  not  give  you  these  tusks,  my 
friend,  because  I  think  them  of  little  value,  nor  to  win  the 
status  of  a  god,  but  because  the  tusks  of  omniscience  are 
a  thousand  times  dearer  to  me  than  these ;  and  may  this 
worthy  gift  be  the  cause  of  my  attaining  Omniscience.' 
Then  the  hunter  departed  with  the  tusks ;  and  before  the 
other  elephants  reached  Chaddanta  he  had  died. 
The  hunter  came  then  before  the  queen  and  said  : 

Here  are  his  tusks,  the  beast  is  dead. 

'  Do  you  tell  me  that  he  is  dead  ? '  she  cried ;  and  he 
answered,  '  Rest  assured  that  he  is  dead,  here  are  the 
tusks.'  Then  she  received  the  six-rayed  tusks,  and  laying 
them  across  her  lap,  and  thinking,  '  These  are  the  tusks 
of  him  who  was  once  my  lord,'  she  was  filled  with  sorrow 
so  great  that  she  could  not  bear  it,  but  there  and  then  her 
heart  broke  and  she  died  the  same  day. 
To  make  the  story  clear,  the  Master  said : 

She  whom  you  used  to  see, 
A  Sister  in  the  yellow  robe. 
Was  once  a  queen,  and  I 
The  king  of  elephants,  who  died. 

But  he  that  took  the  shining  tusks 
Matchless  on  earth,  of  pui'e  ivhite. 
And  brought  them  to  Benares  toivft, 
Has  now  the  name  of  Devadatta. 

"This  story  of  the  past  the  Master  told  out  of  his  own 
knowledge,  but  for  all  its  sorrow,  yet  he  himself  was  free 
from  pain  and  grief. 

"  And  on  hearing  this  discourse  a  multitude  entered  the 
First  Path,  and  the  Sister  novice  not  long  afterwards 
attained  to  Arahatta." 

293 


Buddha  &*  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Summary  of  the  Vessantara  Jdtaka 
A  son  was  born  to  Phusati,  the  Queen-consort  of  the 
King  of  Sivi ;  he  was  named  Vessantara,  and  the  fortune- 
tellers predicted  that  he  would  be  devoted  to  almsgiving, 
never  satisfied  with  giving.  He  was  married  to  his  cousin 
Maddl,  and  they  had  a  son  and  a  daughter.  Vessantara 
possessed  also  a  magical  white  elephant,  that  brought 
rain  wherever  he  went.  At  that  time  there  was  a  drought 
and  famine  in  Kalinga,  and  the  men  of  that  country, 
knowing  of  the  elephant,  and  of  Vessantara's  generosity, 
sent  an  embassy  of  Brahmans  to  ask  for  the  elephant, 
As  the  Prince  was  riding  through  the  city  on  the  elephant, 
to  visit  one  of  his  alms-halls,  the  Brahmans  met  him  by 
the  way  and  craved  a  boon,  nor  would  he  refuse  the 
elephant  himself.  He  descended  from  his  back,  and 
bestowed  him  on  the  Brahmans,  together  with  all  his 
priceless  jewels  and  hundreds  of  attendants. 

Then  was  a  ^nighty  tei'ror  felt,  then  bristling  of 

the  hair 
When  the  gf^eat  elephant  was  given,  the  earth 

did  quake  for  fear ^ 

and  the  people  of  the  city  reproached  the  Bodhisattva  for 
his  too  great  generosity.  In  order  to  avoid  their  anger, 
he  was  banished.  Vessantara  spent  a  day  in  bestowing 
gifts  of  elephants,  horses,  women,  jewels,  and  food ;  then 
he  went  forth  into  exile,  accompanied  by  Maddi  and  both 
the  children,  setting  out  in  a  gorgeous  carriage  drawn  by 
four  horses.  On  the  way  he  gives  the  horses  and  chariot 
in  alms ;  finally  they  reach  a  beautiful  forest  retreat,  and 
there  take  up  their  abode  in  a  hermitage. 
While  there  a  Brahman  visits  Vessantara,  and  begs  for 
294 


Other  Books  of  the  Canon 

the  children  to  be  his  servants,  and  they  are  freely  given ; 
they  are  subsequently  brought  by  the  same  Brahman  to 
the  city  from  which  Vessantara  had  been  exiled,  and  they 
are  there  ransomed  by  his  parents.  Next,  Sakka  appears 
to  Vessantara  in  the  shape  of  another  Brahman,  and  asks 
for  his  wife. 

The  Bodhisattva  bestows  his  wife  upon  the  seeming 
Brahman,  saying : 

Weary  am  /,  nor  hide  I  that :  yet  in  my  own  despite, 

I  give,  and  shrink  not :  for  in  gifts  my  heart  doth  take 

delight  .  .   . 
Both  Jail  and  Kanhdjind  I  let  another  take^ 
And  Maddi  ?ity  devoted  luife,  and  all  for  wisdonis  sake. 
Not  hateful  is  my  faithful  luife,  nor  yet  my  children  are, 
But  perfect  knowledge,  to  my  mind,  is  something  dearer 

far. 

Sakka  then  reveals  himself,  and  restores  Maddi,  and 
bestows  ten  boons ;  as  the  result  of  which  Vessantara 
and  Maddi  are  brought  back  to  their  paternal  city, 
restored  to  favour,  and  reunited  with  their  children,  and 
finally  Vessantara  receives  the  assurance  that  he  shall  be 
born  only  once  again. 

Other  Books  of  the  Canon 

The  Buddhavamsa  is  a  somewhat  jejune  recital  of  the 
histories  of  the  twenty-four  previous  Buddhas,  and  the 
life  of  Gautama,  represented  to  have  been  related  by 
himself.  The  last  book  of  the  Khuddaka  Nikdya  is  the 
Cariydpitaka,  a  collection  of  thirty-five  Jatakas. 
The  third  division  of  the  Pali  canon,  the  Abhidhamma 
Pitaka,  need  not  be  considered  here  at  any  length,  for  it 

295 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

differs  from  the  Sutta  literature  already  discussed  only  in 
being  more  dry,  more  involved,  and  more  scholastic ; 
originality  and  depth  are  comparatively  lacking,  and  our 
knowledge  of  Buddhist  philosophy  would  be  little  less  if 
the  Abhidamma  Pitaka  were  altogether  ignored. 

Uncanonical  Pali  Literature 

If  we  proceed  now  to  speak  of  the  uncanonical  Pali 
Buddhist  literature,  we  meet  in  the  first  place  the  well- 
known  book  of  the  Questions  of  King  Milinda,  which 
might  very  well  indeed  have  been  included  in  the  canon, 
and  is  so  included  in  Siam.  The  most  often  quoted,  and 
very  characteristic  passage  of  the  Milinda  Panha  is  the 
'  chariot '  discourse  on  anatta  : 

Nagasena  enquires  of  the  king:  "Pray,  did  you  come 
afoot,  or  riding?"  and  there  ensues  the  following 
dialogue : 

"  Bhante,  I  do  not  go  afoot :  I  came  in  a  chariot." 
"Your  majesty,  if  you  came  in  a  chariot,  declare  to  me 
the  chariot.    Pray,  your  majesty,  is  the  pole  the  chariot?  " 
"  Nay  verily,  Bhante." 
"  Is  the  axle  the  chariot?" 
"  Nay  verily,  Bhante." 

And  so  for  the  heels,  the  body,  the  banner-staff,  the  yoke, 
the  reins,  and  the  goad :  the  king  admits  that  none  of 
these,  nor  altogether  constitute  a  chariot,  nor  is  there  any 
other  thing  beside  these  which  constitutes  a  chariot. 
Then  Nagasena  continues : 

"Your  majesty,  though  I  question  you  very  closely,  I  fail 
to  discover  any  chariot.  Verily  now,  your  majesty,  the 
word  chariot  is  a  mere  empty  sound.  What  chariot  is 
there  here  ?  " 

And  the  king  is  convinced  that  the  word  *  chariot '  "  is  but  a 
296 


Uncanonical  Pali  Literature 

way  of  counting,  term,  appellation,  convenient  designation, 
and  name  for  pole,  axle,  wheels,  chariot-body,  and  banner- 
staff."  Nagasena  draws  the  parallel : 
"  In  exactly  the  same  way,  your  majesty,  (my  name  of) 
Nagasena  is  but  a  way  of  counting,  term,  appellation,  con- 
venient designation,  mere  name"  for  the  several  parts  of 
the  mind  and  body  collectively  regarded,  while  "in  the 
absolute  sense  no  Ego  is  here  to  be  found." 
The  whole  of  the  canonical  Pali  Buddhist  literature, 
together  with  the  Questions  of  Milinda,  are  of  Indian 
origin,  notwithstanding  they  are  preserved  only  in  the 
Pali  texts  of  Ceylon  and  Burma  and  Siam.  The  re- 
mainder of  the  uncanonical  Pali  literature,  on  the  other 
hand,  is  almost  entirely  the  work  of  the  Sinhalese 
Brethren,  or  of  Indian  authors  like  Buddhaghosha  who 
took  up  their  residence  in  Ceylon.  This  learned  monk 
came  from  a  Brahman  family  of  Bodh  Gaya,  and  being 
converted  by  the  monk  Revata  to  Buddhism,  he  came  to 
Ceylon  to  study  the  Buddhist  commentaries.  There  he 
resided  at  the  Great  Monastery  at  Anuradhapura,  and  as 
the  first  fruit  of  his  studies  composed  the  Visuddhi  Magga 
or  '  Way  of  Purity,'  a  lengthy  compendium  of  Buddhist 
lore.  For  the  most  part  Buddhaghosha  adheres  to  the 
setting  forth  of  the  old  Arahat  ideal,  as,  for  example, 
when  he  tells  of  a  monk  who  is  so  far  removed  from  the 
world  that  he  takes  his  daily  meals  for  three  months  at 
the  house  of  his  mother  without  once  saying  '  I  am  thy 
son,  thou  art  my  mother';  notwithstanding  she  desired 
news  of  her  lost  son  very  greatly.  So  good  a  laywoman 
was  she,  however,  that  when  another  of  the  Brethren 
informed  her  that  he  had  thus  visited  the  house  unknown, 
she  speaks  of  her  son's  behaviour  as  altogether  praise- 
worthy.    For  the  most  part  there  is  no  important  con- 

297 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

tribution  to  Buddhist  doctrine,  but  on  the  other  hand 
many  legends  and  tales  of  wonder  are  preserved  here  and 
nowhere  else  ;  there  is  considerable  stress  laid  on  miracles 
performed  by  the  saints.     Buddhaghosha  also  compiled 
a  commentary  on  the  whole  of  the  canonical  literature; 
though  it  is  doubtful   if   the  Jataka  and   Dhammapada 
commentaries  are  really  his  work.     In  any  case,  Buddha- 
ghosha is  ^/ie  Buddhist  commentator,  before  all  others ; 
his  method  is  clear  and  penetrating,  and  the  illustrative 
leorends  serve  to  bVhten  the  more  tedious  summaries. 
Two  Buddhist  Pali  works  of  very  great  importance,  the 
Dipavamsa    and    Mahavamsa,    are   verse   chronicles   of 
Ceylon  history.     Notwithstanding  that  no  distinction  is 
here  made  between  saga,  legend,  and  de  facto  history,  a 
considerable  part,  and  especially  the  later  part  of  these 
works,    has    a    great    historical   value.      We    find,    for 
example,  a  striking  confirmation  of  the  general  accuracy 
of  the  tradition,  in  the  fact  that  the  chronicles  mention 
amongst   the   names   of   Asoka's   missionaries   those  of 
Kassapa-gotta  and  Majjhima  as  having  been  sent  with 
three    others    to    the    Himalayas,    while    archaeological 
exploration  has  unearthed  from  a  stupa  near  SanchI  a 
funeral  urn  bearing  the  inscription  in  script  of  the  third 
century  b.c.  :  '  Of  the  good  man  Kassapa-gotta,  teacher  of 
all  the  Himalaya  region,'  while  the  inside  of  the  urn  is 
inscribed  '  Of  the  good  man,  Majjhima.' 
Indian  practice,  however,  deals  with  history  as  art  rather 
than  science ;  and  perhaps  the  chief  interest  of  the  Ceylon 
chronicles  appears  in  their  epic  character.    The  Dipavamsa^ 
probably  of  the  fourth  century  a.d. — just  before  Buddha- 
ghosha— is  composed  in  very  poor  Pali,  and  is  altogether 
an  inartistic  production ;  it   has  only  been  preserved  in 
Burma,  while  in  Ceylon  its  place  has  been  taken  by  the 
298 


Uncanonical  Pali  Literature 

much  finer  book  of  the  A  fa /uwavisa,  composed  byMahanama 
toward  the  end  of  the  fifth  century. 

*'We  are  here  able,"  says  Professor  Geiger,  "in  a  way 
that  elsewhere  is  not  easy,  to  follow  the  development  of 
the  epic  in  its  literary  evolution.  We  are  able  to  picture 
to  ourselves  the  contents  and  form  of  the  chronicle  which 
forms  the  basis  of  the  epic  song,  and  of  the  various  elements 
of  which  it  is  composed.  .  .  .  The  Dlpavarnsa  represents 
the  first  unaided  struggle  to  create  an  epic  out  of  the 
already  existing  material.  It  is  a  document  that  fixes  our 
attention  just  because  of  the  imcompleteness  of  the  com- 
position and  its  want  of  style.  .  .  .  The  Mahdvamsa  is 
already  worthy  of  the  name  of  a  true  epic.  It  is  the 
recognized  work  of  a  poet.  And  we  are  able  to  watch  this 
poet  in  a  certain  measure  at  his  work  in  his  workshop. 
Although  he  is  quite  dependent  on  his  materials,  which  he 
is  bound  to  follow  as  closely  as  possible,  he  deals  with 
them  critically,  perceives  their  shortcomings  and  irregu- 
larities, and  seeks  to  improve  and  to  eliminate."  * 
The  hero  of  this  epic  is  Dutthagamani,  a  national  hero 
king  of  the  second  century  b.c,  whose  renown  in  Southern 
Buddhist  annals  is  second  only  to  that  of  Asoka  himself. 
The  king's  victory  over  the  Tamil  leader  is  related  as 
follows : 

"  King  Dutthagamani  proclaimed  with  beat  of  drum  : 
'  None  but  myself  shall  slay  Elara.'  When  he  himself, 
armed,  had  mounted  the  armed  elephant  Kandula,  he 
pursued  Elara  and  came  to  the  south  gate  (of  Anurad- 
hapura).  Near  the  south  gate  of  the  city  the  two  kings 
fought :  Elara  hurled  his  dart,  Gamani  evaded  it ;  he 
made  his  own  elephant  pierce  (Elara's)  elephant  with  his 
tusks,  and  he  hurled  his  dart  at  Elara;  and  the  latter 
^  Geiger,  Dipavamsa  und  Mahdvamsa  (1905),  introduction. 

299 


Buddha  ^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

fell  there  with  his  elephant.  .  .  .  On  the  spot  where  his 
(Elara's)  body  had  fallen  he  burned  it  with  the  catafalque, 
and  there  did  he  build  a  monument  and  ordain  worship. 
And  even  to  this  day  the  princes  of  Lanka,  when  they  draw 
near  to  this  place,  are  wont  to  silence  their  music  because 
of  this  worship." 

With  true  Buddhist  feeling  the  king  is  represented  to  have 
felt  no  joy  in  his  great  victory  and  the  slaughter  of  the 
invader's  hosts : 

"  Looking  back  upon  his  glorious  victory,  great  though 
it  was,  he  knew  no  joy,  remembering  that  thereby  was 
wrought  the  destruction  of  millions  of  beings." 
On  this  the  chronicle  comments : 

"  Should  a  man  think  on  the  hosts  of  human  beings  mur- 
dered for  greed  in  countless  myriads,  and  should  he  care- 
fully keep  in  mind  the  (consequent)  evil,  and  should  he 
also  very  carefully  keep  in  mind  that  mortality  is  the 
(real)  murderer  of  all  of  them — then  will  he,  in  this  way, 
speedily  win   to  freedom  from   sorrow  and   to  a  happy 


state." 


One  of  his  warriors  took  the  robes  of  a  monk,  and  the 
name  of  Theraputtabhaya,  saying : 

"  I  will  do  battle  with  the  rebel  passions,  where  victory  is 
hard  to  win ;  what  other  war  remains  where  all  the  realm 
is  united?" 

The  death-bed  scenes  are  related  with  deep  feeling :  the 
king  has  his  couch  brought  where  he  can  gaze  upon  his 
two  great  buildings,  the  '  Brazen  Palace '  monastery,  and 
the  Great  Thupa,  the  latter  not  yet  complete.  He  is 
surrounded  by  thousands  of  the  Brethren,  but  looking 
about,  he  does  not  see  Theraputtabhaya,  his  old  com- 
panion-in-arms, and  he  thinks : 

"The  Theraputtabhaya  comes  not  now  to  aid  me,  now 
300 


The  Sanskrit  Texts 

that  the  death-struggle  is  begun,  for  methinks  he  foresees 
my  defeat."  But  Theraputtabhaya  appears,  and  the  king 
is  gladdened  by  his  words  : 

"  O  great  king  and  ruler  of  men,  fear  not.  Save  sin  be 
conquered,  death  is  unconquerable.  All  that  has  come  to 
be  must  also  pass  away,  and  all  that  is  is  perishable ;  thus 
the  Master  taught.  Even  the  Buddhas,  never  touched  by 
shame  or  fear,  are  subject  to  mortality  :  therefore  bethink 
thee,  all  that  is  is  perishable,  full  of  sorrow,  and  unreal. 
.  .  .  O  thou  that  art  rich  in  merit,  think  upon  all  those 
works  of  merit  done  by  thee  up  to  this  very  day,  and 
straightway  shall  all  be  well  with  thee !  " 
The  book  of  meritorious  deeds  is  accordingly  read  aloud 
and  we  are  given  the  long  list  of  the  king's  good  works : 
amongst  others,  he  has  maintained  eighteen  hospitals  for 
the  sick. 

"  But  all  this  giving  while  that  I  reigned,  rejoices  not  my 
heart ;  only  the  two  gifts  that  I  gave,  without  care  for  my 
life,  the  while  I  was  in  adversity,  these  gladden  my  heart. 
.  .  .  Twenty-four  years  have  I  been  a  patron  of  the 
Brethren,  and  my  body  shall  also  be  a  patron  of  the 
Brethren.  In  a  place  where  the  great  Thupa  may  be  seen 
...  do  ye  burn  the  body  of  me,  the  servant  of  the 
Brethren." 

Continuators  of  the  Mahdvamsa  have  brought  the 
chronicles  up  to  modern  times,  the  whole  work  consti- 
tuting a  remarkable  history  of  Buddhist  culture  in 
Ceylon. 

The  Sanskrit  Texts 

The  remaining  books  of  Pali  Buddhist  literature  we  shall 

not  discuss,  but  turn  to  consider  the  Sanskrit  books  of  the 

Mahayana. 

301 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

A  considerable  part  of  these  corresponds  to  the  books  of 
the  Pali  canon  already  described  ;  but  they  are  not  trans- 
lations from  Pali,  but  rather  parallel  texts  derived  from 
the  same  Indian  sources,  the  lost  Magadhi  canon  on  which 
the  Pali  books  are  based.  On  this  account,  although  few 
of  the  Mahayana  texts  can  be  shown  to  be  older  in  recen- 
sion than  the  third  or  fourth  century  a.d.,  we  can  under- 
stand that  they  embody  older  materials,  together  with  the 
new  additions. 

The  Mahdvastu,  indeed  ('  The  Book  of  Great  Events '), 
is  still  nominally  a  Hinayana  work,  though  it  belongs  to 
the  heretical  sect  of  the  Lokottaravadins  who  regard  the 
Buddha  as  a  supernatural  being;  the  biography  is  a 
history  of  miracles.  It  is  a  compilation  without  any 
attempt  at  system.  It  contains  also  much  that  is 
properly  Mahayanist,  such  as  an  enumeration  of  the 
Ten  Stations  of  a  Bodhisattva,  Hymns  to  Buddha,  the 
doctrine  that  worship  of  Buddha  suffices  to  achieve 
Nirvana,  and  so  forth ;  but  there  is  no  characteristically 
Mahayana  mythology. 

A  more  famous  and  a  more  important  work  is  the 
Lalitavistara^  '  The  History  of  the  Play  (of  the  Buddha) ' 
— a  title  suggestive  of  the  Hindu  conception  of  Lila  or 
Play,  the  '  Wonderful  Works  of  the  Lord.'  This  is  a 
Buddha  biography  with  elaborate  mythology,  and  stress 
is  laid  on  faith  as  an  essential  element  of  religion. 
The  general  trend  of  the  Lalitavistara  is  well  known 
to  Western  readers,  for  it  has  formed  the  basis  of 
Sir  Edwin  Arnold's  beautiful  poem,  The  Light  of 
Asia.  Its  contents  have  also  been  closely  followed 
in  the  famous  sculptures  of  Borobodur ;  and  from  the 
subject  matter  of  Gandhara  art  we  can  infer  with 
certainty  that  the  Lalitavistara  or  some  very  similar 
302 


Asvaghosha 

text  must  have  already  been  known  in  the  first  and 
second  century  a.d.  In  itself,  however,  the  work  is  not 
yet  a  true  Buddha-epic,  but  contains  the  germ  of  an 
epic. 

Asvaghosha 

It  is  from  such  ballads  and  anecdotes  as  are  preserved 
in  the  Lalitavistara  that  Asvaghosha,  the  greatest 
Buddhist  poet,  has  composed  his  masterly  Biiddha-carita, 
the  '  Course  of  the  Buddha.'  Asvaghosha  is  indeed 
not  merely  a  Buddhist  poet,  but  one  of  the  greatest  of 
Sanskrit  poets,  and  the  chief  forerunner  of  Kalidasa. 
We  have  no  certain  knowledge  of  his  date,  but  it  is  most 
probable  that  he  flourished  during  the  first  century  a.d., 
and  in  any  case  he  must  be  regarded  as  a  Father  of  the 
Mahayana.  He  must  have  been  brought  up  as  a  Brahman 
before  becoming  a  Buddhist.  The  Tibetan  biography 
informs  us  that  "  there  was  no  problem  he  could  not 
solve,  no  argument  he  could  not  refute ;  he  overcame  his 
adversary  as  easily  as  the  storm  wind  breaks  a  rotten 
tree."  The  same  authority  tells  us  that  he  was  a  great 
musician,  who  himself  composed  and  went  about  the 
villages  with  a  troupe  of  singers  and  songstresses.  The 
songs  he  sang  spoke  of  the  emptiness  of  phenomena,  and 
the  crowds  who  heard  his  beautiful  music  stood  and 
listened  in  rapt  silence.  The  Chinese  pilgrim  I-tsing, 
who  visited  India  in  the  seventh  century,  speaks  of  his 
literary  style  as  follows : 

"  He  is  read  far  and  wide  throughout  the  five  Indies  and 
the  lands  of  the  southern  seas.  He  clothes  in  but  a  few 
words  many  and  many  thoughts  and  ideas,  which  so 
rejoice  the  reader's  heart  that  he  never  wearies  of  reading 
the  poem.     Very  profitable  also  it  is  to  read  this  poem, 

303 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

for  here  the  noble  doctrines  are  set  forth  with  convenient 
brevity." 

The  work  as  we  have  it  is  but  a  fragment,  completed  by 
other  hands ;  yet  it  is  a  true  Buddha-epic  and  the  work  of 
a  true  poet,  who  has  created  a  work  of  art,  informed  with 
his  own  deep  love  of  the  Buddha  and  belief  in  the  doctrine ; 
it  is  a  court  epic  in  the  technical  sense,  in  a  style  somewhat 
more  elaborate  than  that  of  the  Mahdvamsa^  but  not  yet 
at  all  immoderately  artificial.     The  Biiddha-carita  is  not 
only  an   important   monument   of   specifically   Buddhist 
literature,  but  exercised   an   unmistakable   influence   on 
the  development  of  Brahmanical  classic  Sanskrit. 
When  the  divine  child  is  born  it  is  prophesied. 
"  The  child  is  now  born  who  knows  that  mystery  hard  to 
attain,   the   means  of   destroying   birth.     Forsaking  his 
kingdom,  indifferent  to  all  worldly  objects,  and  attaining 
the  highest  truth  by  strenuous  efforts,  he  will  shine  forth 
as  a  sun  of  knowledge  to  destroy  the  darkness  of  illusion 
in  the  world.  .  .  .  He  will  proclaim  the  way  of  deliverance 
to  those  afflicted  with  sorrow,  entangled  in  objects  of  sense, 
and  lost  in  the  forest-paths  of  worldly  existence,  as  to 
travellers  who  have  lost  their  way.  .  .  .  He  will  break 
open  for  the  escape  of  living  beings  that  door  whose  bolt 
is  desire,  and  whose  two  leaves  are  ignorance  and  delusion, 
with  that  excellent  blow  of  the  good  Law  that  is  so  hard 
to  find.  .  .  .  And  since  I  have  not  heard  his  Law,  but 
my  time  has  come  to  depart"  (says  the  prophet)  "my 
life  is  only  a  failure,  I  count  even  dwelling  in  the  highest 
heaven  a  misfortune." 

The  young  prince,  as  he  grew  up,  was  surrounded  by 
every  pleasure,  whereby  to  hinder  him  from  seeking  the 
Wanderers'  life;  his  father  "arranged  for  his  son  all 
kinds  of  worldly  enjoyments,  praying    *  Would  that  he 

304 


Asvaghosha 

may  not  be  able  to  forsake  us,  even  though  he  be  hindered 
by  mere  unrest  of  the  senses.'" 

The  prince  is  tempted  by  beautiful  women,  skilled  in  the 
arts  of  seduction : 

"  Come  and  listen  to  the  notes  of  this  intoxicated  cuckoo 
as  he  sings,  while  another  cuckoo  sings  as  if  consenting, 
wholly  without  care.  Would  that  thine  was  the  intoxi- 
cation of  the  birds  which  the  spring  produces,  rather  than 
the  dreams  of  a  man  of  thought,  ever  pondering  how  wise 
he  is!" 

So  they  sing,  voicing  the  spring-songs  of  the  folk,  and 
the  resentment  of  women  against  a  man's  abstraction; 
but  the  Bodhisattva  remains  unmoved,  preoccupied  with 
the  thought  that  death  is  the  ultimate  fate  of  all. 
" '  What  is  it  that  these  women  lack,'  he  asks,  '  that  they 
perceive  not  that  youth  is  fickle?  for  this  old  age  will 
destroy  whatever  has  beauty.  .  .  .  Evidently  they  know 
nothing  of  death  which  carries  all  away,  they  are  joyous 
in  a  world  which  is  all  pain,  and  so  at  ease  and  without 
distress  they  can  sport  and  laugh.  What  rational  being, 
who  knows  of  old  age,  death  and  sickness,  could  stand  or 
sit  at  his  ease,  or  sleep,  far  less  laugh?  ...  If  desire 
arises  in  the  heart  of  the  man,  who  knows  that  death 
is  certain,  I  think  that  his  soul  must  be  made  of  iron, 
who  restrains  it  in  this  great  terror,  and  does  not  weep.' " 
The  following  is  from  Yasodhara's  lament  when  it  is 
discovered  that  Prince  Siddhartha  has  become  a  Wanderer : 
"  If  he  wishes  to  abandon  his  lawful  wife  as  a  widow,  and 
to  become  a  religious,  then  where  is  his  religion,  wishing 
to  practise  a  rule  without  his  lawful  wife  to  share  it  1  It 
must  be  that  he  has  never  heard  of  the  monarchs  of  old, 
his  own  forefathers,  Mahasudarsa  and  others,  how  they 
went  with  their  wives  into  the  forest,  since  he  thus  wishes 

u  305 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

to  adopt  the  religious  life  apart  from  me !  He  does  not  see 
that  husband  and  wife  are  alike  consecrated  by  sacrifices, 
purified  by  the  performance  of  Vedic  rites,  and  destined 
to  enjoy  the  same  fruits  hereafter.  ...  I  have  no  such 
longing  for  the  joys  of  heaven,  nor  are  these  hard  for 
common  folk  to  attain,  if  they  be  resolute ;  but  my  one 
desire  is  that  my  darling  may  never  leave  me  either  in  this 
world  or  the  next." 

It  is  interesting  to  note  the  arguments  adduced  by  the 
king's  Brahman  family  priest,  and  by  a  trusted  counsellor, 
who  are  sent  to  persuade  the  Bodhisattva  to  return, 
offering  him  the  kingdom  itself  in  his  father's  place.  The 
former  points  out : 

"Religion  is  not  wrought  out  only  in  the  forests;  the 
salvation  of  ascetics  can  be  accomplished  even  in  a  city ; 
thought  and  effort  are  the  true  means ;  the  forest  and  the 
badge  are  only  a  coward's  signs." 

and  he  cites  the  case  of  Janaka  and  others ;  at  the  same 
time  he  appeals  to  the  prince  to  take  pity  on  his  unhappy 
parents.  The  counsellor,  with  more  worldly  wisdom, 
argues  that  if  there  be  a  future  life,  it  will  be  time  enough 
to  consider  it  when  we  come  to  it,  and  if  not,  then  there 
is  liberation  attained  without  any  effort  at  all ;  and  more- 
over, the  nature  of  the  world  cannot  be  altered,  it  is  S2iz 
generis  subject  to  mortality,  and  it  therefore  cannot  be 
overcome  by  extinguishing  desire : 

*' '  Who  causes  the  sharpness  of  the  thorn  ? '  he  asks,  '  or 
the  various  natures  of  beasts  and  birds  ?  All  this  has 
arisen  spontaneously ;  there  is  no  acting  from  desire,  how 
then  can  there  be  such  a  thing  as  will  ?  ' " 
At  the  same  time  he  reminds  the  prince  of  his  social 
duties,  his  debt  to  the  ancestors,  to  be  repaid  only  by 
begetting  children,  by  study,  and  by  sacrifice  to  the  Gods, 
306 


Asvaghosha 

and  sug-gests  that  he  should  fulfil  these  social  duties 
before  retiring  to  the  forest.  To  these  subtle  advisers 
the  prince  replies  by  offering  the  usual  '  consolation '  to 
sorrowing  parents : 

"  Since  parting  is  inevitably  fixed  in  the  course  of  time 
for  all  beings,  just  as  for  travellers  who  have  joined 
company  on  a  road,  what  wise  man  would  cherish  sorrow, 
when  he  loses  his  kindred,  even  though  he  loves  them  ?  " 
He  adds  that  his  departure  to  the  forest  cannot  be 
considered  'ill-timed,'  for  liberation  can  never  be  ill- 
timed.  That  the  king  should  wish  to  surrender  to  him 
the  kingdom,  he  says,  is  a  noble  thought,  but 
"  How  can  it  be  right  for  the  wise  man  to  enter  royalty, 
the  home  of  illusion,  where  are  found  anxiety,  passion, 
and  weariness,  and  the  violation  of  all  right  through 
another's  service  (exploitation)  ?  " 
To  the  metaphysical  objections  he  replies: 
"This  doubt  whether  anything  exists  or  not,  is  not  to  be 
solved  for  me  by  another's  words ;  having  determined  the 
truth  by  discipline  or  by  Yoga,  I  will  grasp  for  myself 
whatever  is  known  of  it  .  .  .  what  wise  man  would  go 
by  another's  belief?  Mankind  are  like  the  blind  directed 
in  the  darkness  by  the  blind.  .  .  .  Even  the  sun,  therefore, 
may  fall  to  the  earth,  even  the  mount  Himalaya  may  lose 
its  firmness;  but  I  will  never  return  to  my  home  as  a 
worldling,  lacking  the  knowledge  of  the  truth,  and  with 
sense  only  alert  for  external  objects  :  I  would  enter  the 
blazing  fire,  but  not  my  house  with  my  purpose  unful- 
filled." 

In  such  a  fashion  Asvaghosha  represents  those  stations  in 
the  life  of  every  Saviour,  which  are  familiar  to  Christians 
in  the  reply  of  Christ  to  his  parents :  Wist  ye  not  that 
I  must  be  about  my  Father's  business?  and  in  his  refusal  of 

307 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

an  earthly  kingdom  and  the  status  of  a  Dharmaraja,  when 
these  are  laid  before  him  by  the  Devil. 
The  passages  so  far  quoted  are  primarily  edifying:  and 
notwithstanding  the  skill  with  which  Buddhist  thought  is 
there  expressed,  there  are  others  that  will  better  exemplify 
Asvaghosha's  epic  diction  and  personal  intensity  of  imagi- 
nation. Of  the  two  following  extracts,  the  first  describes  an 
early  meditation  of  the  Bodhisattva,  beneath  a  rose-apple 
tree ;  and  the  second,  the  gift  of  food  which  he  accepts,  when 
after  five  years  of  mortification  of  the  flesh,  he  finds  that 
mortification  of  the  flesh  will  not  lead  him  to  his  goal, 
and  reverts  to  that  first  process  of  insight  which  came  to 
him  as  he  sat  beneath  the  rose-apple.  Here  Asvaghosha 
proves  himself  a  true  poet ;  he  has  a  saga-teller's  power  of 
calling  up  a  vivid  picture  in  a  few  words,  he  understands 
the  heavy  toil  of  the  peasant  and  of  the  beasts  of  burden, 
and  he  represents  the  pure  dignity  of  unsophisticated 
girlhood,  in  the  person  of  the  herdsman's  daughter,  with 
the  same  simplicity  that  Homer  uses  when  he  speaks  of 
Nausicaa. 

The  prince  went  forth  one  day  with  a  party  of  his  friends, 
"  with  a  desire  to  see  the  glades  of  the  forest,  and  longing 
for  peace : " 

"  Lured  by  love  of  the  woods  and  longing  for  the  beauties 
of  the  earth,  he  repaired  to  a  place  near  at  hand  on  the 
outskirts  of  a  forest;  and  there  he  saw  a  piece  of  land 
being  ploughed,  with  the  path  of  the  plough  broken  like 
waves  on  the  water.  .  .  .  And  regarding  the  men  as  they 
ploughed,  their  faces  soiled  by  the  dust,  scorched  by  the 
sun  and  chafed  by  the  wind,  and  their  cattle  bewildered 
by  the  burden  of  drawing,  the  all-noble  one  felt  the  utter- 
most compassion;  and  alighting  from  the  back  of  his 
horse,  he  passed  slowly  over  the  earth,  overcome  with 
308 


Asvaghosha 

sorrow — pondering  the  birth  and  the  destruction  pro- 
ceeding in  the  world,  he  grieved,  and  he  exclaimed,  '  This 
is  pitiful  indeed!'  Then  because  he  would  be  lonely  in 
his  thoughts,  he  hindered  those  friends  who  were  follow- 
ing him,  and  went  to  the  root  of  a  rose-apple  tree  in  a 
solitary  place,  of  which  the  leaves  were  all  a-tremble. 
There  he  sat  upon  the  leafy  ground,  and  the  emerald 
grass;  and  meditating  on  the  origin  and  destruction  of 
the  world,  he  laid  hold  upon  the  path  that  leads  to 
constancy  of  mind." 

Long  years  after,  having  vainly  mortified  the  flesh,  the 
Bodhisattva  reflected : 

"  This  is  not  the  road  that  leads  to  passionlessness,  or  to 
liberation  ;  that  was  verily  the  true  path  which  I  found  be- 
neath the  rose-apple  tree.  But  that  is  not  to  be  achieved  by 
one  who  has  lost  his  strength  .  .  .  and  making  up  his  mind, 
'This  means  involves  the  taking  of  food.'  .  .  .  Then,  at 
that  very  time,  Nandabala,  the  daughter  of  the  chief  of  the 
herdsmen,  impelled  by  the  gods  {i.e.  following  a  spon- 
taneous and  inexplicable  impulse)  and  with  a  sudden  joy 
uprising  in  her  heart,  came  nigh ;  her  arm  was  decked 
with  a  white  shell  bracelet,  and  she  wore  a  dark  blue 
woollen  cloth,  like  the  river  Jamuna,  with  its  dark  blue 
water  and  its  wreath  of  foam ;  and  with  joy  increased  by 
faith,  and  widely  opened  lotus-eyes,  she  bowed  before  the 
seer,  and  persuaded  him  to  take  some  milk." 
Asvaghosha's  other  works  include  the  Saundardnanda 
Kdvya,  which  also  deals  with  the  life  of  Buddha,  and  ex- 
hibits some  Mahayana  tendencies  which  are  not  apparent 
in  the  Ihiddha-carita.  The  Siiti'dlamkdra  is  a  collection  of 
pious  legends  in  prose  and  verse,  in  the  manner  of  the 
Jatakas  and  Avadanas.  An  Alamkara  sastra  is  also 
ascribed  to  him.     More  doubtful  is  the  authorship  of  the 

309 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Vajrasuci^  or  Diamond-needle,  a  polemic  against  the 
Brahmanical  caste  system,  supported  mainly  by  citations 
from  Brahmanical  sources,  such  as  the  Vedas,  the  Maha- 
bharata,  and  the  Laws  of  Manu.  Finally  there  remains  to 
be  named  the  very  important  Mahay ana-s7'addha-utpada^ 
or  '  Awakening  of  Faith  in  the  Mahayana,'  a  philosophical 
and  mystical  work  dealing  with  the  doctrines  of  the 
Tathagata-garbha  and  Alaya-vijiiana  after  the  manner  of 
the  Yogavaracaras  and  Asanga ;  but  there  are  good  reasons 
to  think  that  this  text  may  be  of  considerably  later  date ; 
it  was  first  translated  into  Chinese  only  in  the  sixth  century, 
and  is  not  known  in  the  Sanskrit  original. 

Aryasura 

A  poet  of  Asvaghosha's  school  is  Aryasura,  the  author  of  a 
famous  Jatakamala  or '  Garland  of  Jatakas,'  to  be  assigned, 
most  probably,  to  the  fourth  century  a.d.  Jatakamalas  of 
this  type  are  selections  of  the  old  stories  retold  as  homilies 
in  artistic  prose  and  verse,  for  the  use  of  monkish  teachers 
trained  in  the  tradition  of  Sanskrit  court  prose  and  poetry. 
Of  Aryasura's  work  it  has  been  well  said : 
"  It  is  perhaps  the  most  perfect  writing  of  its  kind.  It  is 
distinguished  no  less  by  the  superiority  of  its  style  than 
by  the  loftiness  of  its  thoughts.  Its  verses  and  artful 
prose  are  written  in  the  purest  Sanskrit,  and  charm  the 
reader  by  the  elegance  of  their  form  and  the  skill  displayed 
in  the  handling  of  a  great  variety  of  metres.  .  .  .  Above 
all,  I  admire  his  moderation.  Unlike  so  many  other 
Indian  masters  in  the  art  of  literary  composition,  he  does 
not  allow  himself  the  use  of  embellishing  apparel  and  the 
whole  luxuriant  mise  eit  scene  of  Sanskrit  alamkara  beyond 
what  is  necessary  for  his  subject "  (Speyer). 
I-tsing  praises  X^Cie.  Jatakamala  as  among  the  works  specially 
310 


Aryasura 

admired  in  his  time.  But  more  important  is  the  fact  that 
it  is  these  versions  of  the  Jatakas  which  are  illustrated  in 
the  wall-paintings  of  Ajanta,  and  indeed,  in  some  cases  the 
pictures  are  inscribed  with  verse  from  Aryasiira's  work ; 
the  painting  and  the  literary  work  are  in  close  harmony  of 
sentiment. 

The  first  story  relates  the  Bodhisattva's  gift  of  his  own 
body  for  the  nourishment  of  a  hungry  tigress,  that 
she  might  not  eat  her  own  young,  and  it  begins  as 
follows : 

"  Even  in  former  births  the  Lord  showed  his  innate,  disin- 
terested, and  immense  love  toward  all  creatures,  and 
identified  himself  with  all  beings.  For  this  reason  we 
ought  to  have  the  utmost  faith  in  Buddha,  the  Lord. 
This  will  be  shown  in  the  following  great  deed  of  the  Lord 
in  a  former  birth."  Following  each  story  is  an  injunction 
pointing  out  the  moral.  Many  of  the  stories  inculcate 
the  duty  of  gentleness  and  mercy,  by  means  of  the  relation 
of  some  anecdote  regarding  some  helpful  animal  and  an 
ungrateful  man.  The  Ruru-deer,  for  example : 
" '  With  his  large  blue  eyes  of  incomparable  mildness  and 
brightness,  with  his  horns  and  hoofs  endowed  with  a 
gentle  radiance,  as  if  they  were  made  of  precious  stones, 
that  ruru-deer  of  surpassing  beauty  seemed  a  moving 
treasury  of  gems.  Then,  knowing  his  body  to  be  a  very 
desirable  thing,  and  aware  of  the  pitiless  hearts  of  men, 
he  would  frequent  such  forest  ways  as  were  free  from 
human  company,  and  because  of  his  keen  intelligence  he 
was  careful  to  avoid  such  places  as  were  made  unsafe  by 
devices  of  huntsmen  ...  he  warned  also  the  animals 
who  followed  after  him  to  avoid  them.  He  exercised  his 
rule  over  them  like  a  teacher,  like  a  father.'" 
One  day,  however,  he  heard  the  cries  of  a  drowning  man, 

311 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

and  entering  the  stream  he  saved  his  life  and  brought  him 
to  the  shore.  At  the  same  time  the  ruru-deer  prayed  the 
man  to  say  nothing  of  his  adventure,  for  he  feared  the 
cruelty  of  men.  The  queen  of  that  country,  however, 
happened  at  that  time  to  dream  of  just  such  a  deer; 
and  the  king  offered  a  reward  for  the  capture  of  such  a 
creature.  The  man  whose  life  had  been  saved,  being 
poor,  was  tempted  by  the  offer  of  a  fertile  village  and 
ten  beautiful  women,  and  revealed  to  the  king  the  secret 
of  the  beautiful  deer.  The  king  is  about  to  let  fly  his 
arrow,  when  the  deer  asks  him  to  stay  his  hand,  and  to 
tell  who  has  revealed  the  secret  of  his  forest  home. 
When  the  wretched  man  is  pointed  out,  the  deer  exclaims : 
'  Fie  upon  him  1  It  is  verily  a  true  word,  that  '  better  it 
is  to  take  a  log  from  the  water  than  to  save  an  ungrateful 
man  from  drowning.'  Thus  it  is  that  he  requites  the 
exertions  undertaken  on  his  behalf !  " 
The  king  inquires  why  the  deer  speaks  so  bitterly,  and 
the  Bodhisattva  (for  such,  of  course,  is  the  deer)  replies  : 
"  No  desire  to  pass  censure  moved  me  to  these  words,  O 
king,  but  knowing  his  blameworthy  deed,  I  spoke  sharp 
words  to  hinder  him  from  doing  such  a  deed  again.  For 
who  would  willingly  use  harsh  speech  to  those  who  have 
done  a  sinful  deed,  strewing  salt,  as  it  were,  upon  the 
wound  of  their  fault  ?  But  even  to  his  beloved  son  a 
physician  must  apply  such  medicine  as  his  sickness 
requires.  He  who  has  put  me  in  this  danger,  O  best  of 
men,  it  is  whom  I  rescued  from  the  current,  being  moved 
by  pity.  Verily,  intercourse  with  evil  company  does  not 
lead  to  happiness." 

Then  the  king  would  have  slain  the  man ;  but  the  Bodhi- 
sattva pleads  for  his  life,  and  that  he  may  receive  the 
promised  reward.  Then  the  Bodhisattva  preaches  the 
312 


Aryasura 

doctrine  to  the  king  and  his  wives  and  the  officers  of  the 
court  as  follows : 

"Of  the  Law  with  the  manifold  duties  dependent  on  it 
and  its  divisions :  to  abstain  from  injuring  others,  from 
theft,  and  the  like,  of  this,  I  hold  the  shortest  summary  is 
'  Mercy  toward  every  creature.'  For  consider,  thou 
illustrious  prince :  If  mercy  to  every  creature  should  lead 
men  to  look  on  these  as  like  to  themselves  or  to  the 
members  of  their  own  family,  whose  heart  would  ever 
cherish  the  baleful  wish  for  wickedness?  .  .  .  For  this 
reason  the  wise  firmly  believe  that  in  Mercy  the  whole 
of  Righteousness  is  comprised.  What  virtue,  indeed, 
cherished  by  the  pious  is  not  the  consequence  of  Mercy  ? 
Having  this  in  mind,  be  intent  ever  to  fortify  thy  mercy 
to  all  people,  holding  them  as  like  thy  son  or  like  thyself; 
and  winning  by  thy  pious  deeds  thy  people's  hearts,  mayst 
thou  glorify  thy  royalty  !  " 

"  Then  the  king  praised  the  words  of  the  ruru-deer,  and 
with  his  landholders  and  burghers  he  became  intent  on 
following  the  Law  of  Righteousness.  And  he  granted 
security  to  all  fourfooted  creatures  and  to  birds.  .  .  . 
("This  story  is  also  to  be  told  when  discoursing  on 
compassion,  and  may  be  adduced  when  treating  of  the 
high-mindedness  of  the  virtuous,  and  also  when  censuring 
the  mischievous.") 

Many  of  the  Buddhist  stories  are  thus  in  perfect  accord 
with  the  words  of  the  Western  poet  who  says : 

He  praycih  best  who  love  I  h  best 
All  things  both  i^reat  and  small. 

and  indeed,  the  A  ?tc2e?il  Mai'iiier  is  just  such  a  tale  as  the 
Buddhist  Brethren  of  literary  tastes  would  have  made 
into  a  Jataka. 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Scarcely  distinguishable  from  the  Jatakas  are  the  various 
Avadanas,    which     consist    in  general    of    Bodhisattva 
legends.     Amongst   these   there   should  be  noticed  the 
Asoka  cycle  which  forms  a  part  of  the  Divydvaddna  or 
'  Heavenly  Avadanas.'     The  finest  of  these  legends  is  the 
pathetic  story  of  Kunala,  the  son  of  Asoka,  whose  eyes 
are  put  out  by  his  wicked  stepmother,  without  awakening 
in  his  heart  any  feelings  of  anger  or  hatred.     I  quote  the 
summary  of  this  story  from  the  work  of  Oldenberg  : 
"  Kunala — this  name  was  given  to  him  on  account  of  his 
wonderfully  beautiful  eyes,  which  are  as  beautiful  as  the 
eyes  of  the  bird  Kunala — lives  far  from  the  bustle  of  the 
court,  devoted  to  meditation  on  impermanence.     One  of 
the  queens  is  burning  with  love  for  the  beautiful  youth, 
but  her  solicitation  and  the  menaces  of  disdained  beauty 
are  alike  in  vain.     Thirsting  for  revenge,  she  contrives 
to  have  him  sent  to  a  distant  province,  and  then  issues 
an  order  to  that  quarter,  sealed  with  the  slyly  stolen  ivory 
seal  of  the  king,  for  the  prince's  eyes  to  be  torn  out. 
When  the  order  arrives,  no  one  can  be  prevailed  upon  to 
lay  hands  on  the  noble  eyes  of  the  prince.     The  prince 
himself  offers  rewards  to  any  one  who  should  be  prepared 
to   execute   the   king's  order.     At  last  a  man  appears, 
repulsive  to  look  on,  who  undertakes  the  performance. 
When,  amid  the  cries  of  the  weeping  multitude,  the  first 
eye  is  torn  out,  Kunala  takes  it  in  his  hand  and  says  : 
'  Why  seest  thou  no  longer  those  forms  on  which  thou 
wast  just  now  looking,  thou  coarse  ball  of  flesh  ?     How 
they  deceive  themselves,  how  blamable  are  those  fools, 
who  cling  to  thee  and  say,  "This  is  I."  '     And  when  his 
second  eye  is  torn  out,  he  says :  '  The  eye  of  flesh,  which 
is    hard   to   get,    has   been   torn   from    me,  but   I  have 
won  the  perfect  faultless  eye  of  wisdom.     The  king  has 

314 


Aryasura 

forsaken  me,  but  I  am  the  son  ot  the  highly  exalted  king 
of  truth  :  whose  child  I  am  called.'  He  is  informed  that 
it  is  the  queen,  by  whom  the  command  concerning  him 
was  issued.  Then  he  says  :  '  Long  may  she  enjoy  happi- 
ness, life,  and  power,  who  has  brought  me  so  much 
welfare.'  And  he  goes  forth  a  beggar  with  his  wife ; 
and  when  he  comes  to  his  father's  city,  he  sings  to  the 
lute  before  the  palace.  The  king  hears  Kunala's  voice; 
he  has  him  called  in  to  him,  but  when  he  sees  the  blind 
man  before  him,  he  cannot  recognize  his  son.  At  last  the 
truth  comes  to  light.  The  king  in  the  excess  of  rage  and 
grief  is  about  to  torture  and  kill  the  guilty  queen.  But 
Kunala  says  :  '  It  would  not  become  thee  to  kill  her. 
Do  as  honour  demands,  and  do  not  kill  a  woman.  There 
is  no  higher  reward  than  that  for  benevolence  :  patience, 
sire,  has  been  commanded  by  the  Perfect  One.'  And  he 
falls  at  the  king's  feet,  saying  :  '  O  king,  I  feel  no  pain, 
notwithstanding  the  inhumanity  which  has  been  practised 
on  me,  I  do  not  feel  the  fire  of  anger.  My  heart  has 
none  but  a  kindly  feeling  for  my  mother,  who  has  given 
the  order  to  have  my  eyes  torn  out.  As  sure  as  these 
words  are  true,  may  my  eyes  again  become  as  they  were;' 
and  his  eyes  shone  in  their  old  splendour  as  before. 
"  Buddhist  poetry  has  nowhere  glorified  in  more  beautiful 
fashion,  forgiveness,  and  the  love  of  enemies  than  in  the 
narrative  of  Kunala.  But  even  here  we  feel  that  cool  air 
which  floats  round  all  pictures  of  Buddhist  morality. 
The  wise  man  stands  upon  a  height  to  which  no  act  of 
man  can  approach.  He  resents  no  wrong  which  sinful 
passion  may  work  him,  but  he  even  feels  no  pain  under 
this  wrong.  The  body,  over  which  his  enemies  have 
power,  is  not  himself.  Ungrieved  by  the  actions  of  other 
men,  he  permits  his  benevolence  to  flow  over  all,  over  the 


Buddha  &  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

evil  as  well  as  the  good.  'Those  who  cause  me  pain  and 
those  who  cause  me  joy,  to  all  I  am  alike ;  affection 
and  hatred  I  know  not.  In  joy  and  sorrow  I  remain 
unmoved,  in  honour  and  dishonour;  throughout  I  am 
alike.  That  is  the  perfection  of  my  equanimity.'" 
The  whole  of  the  Buddhist  Sanskrit  works  so  far  described 
stand  in  a  half-way  position  between  the  Hinayana  and 
Mahayana,  the  Awakening  of  Faith  ascribed  to  Asva- 
ghosha,  of  course,  excepted,  though  leaning  more  and  more 
to  the  Mahayana  side,  a  tendency  which  finds  expression 
in  an  increasing  emphasis  on  devotion  to  the  Buddha 
upon  the  Bodhisattva  ideal. 

Mahdymia-sutras 

With  the  Mahayana-sutras  we  reach  a  series  of  works 
that  are  entirely  and  wholly  Mahayanist.  There  is  of 
course  no  Mahayana  canon,  but  at  the  same  time  there  are 
nine  books  which  are  still  highly  honoured  by  all  sects  of 
the  Mahayana  alike.  Amongst  these  are  the  Lalitavistara 
already  mentioned,  the  Ashtasahasrika-pi^ajndpdramitd^ 
and  the  Saddhai'mapundarika. 

The  last  mentioned,  the  'Lotus  of  the  Good  Law,'  is 
perhaps  the  most  important  of  these,  and  certainly  of  the 
chief  literary  interest.  It  may  be  dated  about  the  end  of 
the  second  century  a.d.  Here  nothing  remains  of  the 
human  Buddha:  the  Buddha  is  a  God  above  all  other 
gods,  an  everlasting  being,  who  ever  was  and  for  ever 
shall  be ;  the  Buddhist  religion  is  here  completely  freed 
from  a  dependence  upon  history.  The  Lotus  of  the 
Good  Law  is  rather  a  drama  than  a  narrative;  it  is 
"  An  undeveloped  mystery  play,  in  which  the  chief  inter- 
locutor, not  the  only  one,  is  Sakyamuni,  the  Lord.  It 
consists  of  a  series  of  dialogues,  brightened  by  the  magic 
^16 


Mahayana  sutras 

effects  of  a  would-be  supernatural  scenery.  The  phantas- 
magorical  arts  of  the  whole  are  as  clearly  intended  to  im- 
press us  with  the  idea  of  the  might  and  glory  of  the  Buddha, 
as  his  speeches  are  to  set  forth  his  all-surpassing  wisdom." 
Of  literary  interest  are  the  numerous  dramatic  parables, 
such  as  that  in  which  the  Buddha  is  likened  to  a  physician, 
whose  many  sons  are  struck  down  by  an  epidemic.  He 
prepares  for  them  a  medicine,  which  some  take,  and  are 
cured ;  the  remainder  are  perverse,  and  place  no  faith  in 
the  preparation.  Then  the  father  departs  to  a  far  country — 
the  individual  Buddha,  that  is,  passes  away — and  then  it  is 
that  the  forsaken  and  still  ailing  sons  turn  to  the  remedy 
that  has  been  left  for  them,  knowing  that  they  have  no 
other  resource.  The  narrator  understands  very  well  that 
trait  of  human  nature  whereby  the  man  of  genius  is  seldom 
appreciated  until  after  his  death ! 

The  KaraTidavyjika,  which  was  translated  into  Chinese 
already  in  the  third  century  a.d.  is  concerned  with  the 
praise  of  the  Bodhisattva  Avalokitesvara.  The  Snkkd- 
vativyuha  praises  the  Buddha  Amitabha,  and  the  Blessed 
Land  or  Western  Paradise.  A  more  philosophical  siitra, 
and  one  widely  read  in  Japan  at  the  present  day,  is  the 
Vajracckedika,  or  Diamond-cutter,  and  this  text  will  be 
familiar  at  least  by  name  to  many  readers  of  the  works  of 
Lafcadio  Hearn. 

The  following  passage  will  illustrate  its  metaphysical 
character,  and  reminds  one  of  the  saying  of  Behmen, 
in  answer  to  the  disciple's  inquiry,  Whither  goeth  the 
Soul  when  the  Body  dieth? — "There  is  no  necessity  for 
it  to  go  anywhither." 

"And  again ?  O  Subhuti,  if  anybody  were  to  say  that  the 
Tathagata  ^  goes,  or  comes,  or  stands,  or  sits,  or  lies  down, 
*  In  this  book  generally  translated  '  He-who-has-thus-attained.' 

2>^7 


Buddha  &P  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

he,  O  Subhuti,  does  not  understand  the  meaning  of  my 
preaching.      And    why  ?     Because    the  word   Tathagata 
means  one  who  does  not  go  to  anywhere,  and  does  not 
come    from   anywhere;    and   therefore   he   is  called  the 
Tathagata  (truly  come),  holy  and  fully  enlightened." 
The   very    much    more    extended    works    known    as  the 
Prajnctpm'amitds  are  filled  with  similar  texts  upon  the 
Emptiness  {^Stuiyata)  of  things.     Works  of  this  class  are 
known,  having  in  various  recensions  100,000,  25,000,  8000, 
and  some  smaller  numbers  of  couplets ;  ih^Pinjudparaviild 
of  8000  couplets  is  the  most  commonly  met  with.     They 
deal  in  part  with  the  Six  Perfections  of  a  Bodhisattva 
(Paramitas),   and   especially  with    the  highest  of   these, 
Prajna,  Transcendent  Wisdom.     This  wisdom  consists  in 
perfect  realization  of  the  Void,  the  No-thing,  the  Sunyata ; 
all  is  mere  name.     In  these  works  the  repetitions  and  the 
long  lists  of  particular  illustrations  of  the  general  truths 
are  carried  to  incredible  lengths,  far  beyond  anything  to 
be  found  in  the  Hinayana  Suttas.     But  let  us  remember 
that  the  single  truth  of  the  Emptiness  of  things,  thus 
inculcated  by  repetition — a  repetition  similar  to  that  of 
the  endless  series  of  painted  and  sculptured  figures  of  the 
excavated  churches  and  temple  walls — is  no  easy  thing  to 
be  realized ;  and  the  pious  authors  of  these  works  were 
not   concerned   for   an  artistic  sense  of  proportion,   but 
with  the  dissemination  of  the  saving  truth.     They  did 
not  believe  that  this  truth  could  be  too  often  repeated ; 
and  if,  for  example,  as  they  claim  in  the  Vajracchedika, 
it   was   known   even   to    children   and   ignorant   persons 
that  matter  itself  could  be  neither  a  thing  nor  nothing, 
perhaps    even    the    modern    world    might    do    well    to 
consider  the  value  of  repetition  as  an  educational  prin- 
ciple.     F'or    in    Europe   it    is   not   always    remembered, 
318 


Nagiirjuna  and  Others 

even  in  scientific  circles,  that  Matter  exists  only  as  a 
concept, 

Ndgdrjiina  mtd  Others 

We  have  already  mentioned  the  great  Mahayana  master 
Nagarjuna,  who  flourished  in  the  latter  part  of  the  second 
century,  a  little  after  Asvaghosha.  Like  the  latter  he  was 
first  a  Brahman,  and  Brahmanical  philosophy  is  evident 
in  his  work.  If  not  the  founder  of  the  Mahayana,  he  is 
the  moulder  of  one  of  its  chief  developments,  the  Mad- 
hyamika  school,  of  which  the  chief  scriptures  are  his  own 
Mddhyamika  sfitra.  In  these  he  is  chiefly  concerned 
to  demonstrate  the  indefinability  of  the  Suchness  (Bhuta- 
thuta),  and  he  expresses  this  very  plainly  in  several 
vpassages  of  these  sutras,  as  follows : 

After  his  passing,  deem  not  thus : 
'  The  Buddha  stillis  here' 
lie  is  above  all  contrasts, 
To  be  aftd  not  to  be. 

While  liviftg,  deem  not  thus  : 
'  ilie  Buddha  is  noiv  here.' 
He  is  above  all  contrasts. 
To  be  and  not  to  be. 
and 

To  think  '  //  is  '  is  cternalisfu, 
To  think,  '  It  is  not,'  is  nihilism  : 
Being  and  non-being. 
The  ivise  cling  not  to  either. 

The  work  of  Kumarajiva  consists  in  his  biographies  of 
Asvaghosha  and  Nagarjuna,  and  a  certain  legendary  Deva 
or  Aryadeva ;  these  biographies  were  translated  into 
Chinese  early  in  the  fifth  century  a.d. 

319 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

The  works  of  Asanga,  the  great  master  of  the  Yogacara 
sect,  were  translated  into  Chinese  in  the  sixth  century. 

Shdnti  Deva 

Most  eminent  amongst  the  later  Mahayana  poets  is  the 
sainted  Shanti  Deva,  who  is  probably  to  be  assigned 
to  the  seventh  century.  His  Shikshdsanmccaya,  or 
'Student's  Compendium'  is  a  work  of  infinite  learning, 
each  verse  being  provided  with  an  extensive  commentary 
and  exegesis :  the  work  itself  neither  is,  nor  is  meant  to 
be,  original  or  personal.  The  two  first  of  its  twenty-seven 
verses  run  as  follows : 

Since  to  my  neighbours  as  to  myself 

Are  fear  and  sorrow  hateftil  each, 

What  then  distinguishes  my  self. 

That  I  should  cherish  it  above  another's  ? 

Wouldst  thou  to  Evil  put  an  end, 

And  reach  the  Blessed  Goal, 

Then  let  your  Faith  be  rooted  deep, 

And  all  your  thought  upon  Enlightenment. 

Far  more  poetical,  and  in  Buddhist  literature  very 
noticeable  for  its  burden  of  personal  emotion,  is  the 
Bodhicaryavatdra,  or  'Way  of  Enlightenment,'  where 
the  loftiest  note  of  religious  art  is  again  and  again  touched. 
This  is  perhaps  the  most  beautiful  of  all  poetic  expressions 
of  the  Bodhisattva  ideal,  of  self-dedication  to  the  work  of 
salvation,  and  the  eternal  activity  of  love.^ 
"Nothing new  will  be  told  here,"  says  Shanti  Deva,  "nor 
have  I  skill  in  the  writing  of  books;  therefore  I  have 
^  This  work  has  been  compared  to  the  Imitation  of  Christ  of 
Thomas  a  Kempis  \  both  are  works  of  true  devotion  and  true  art,  but 
the  Way  of  Enlightenment  is  not  an  '  Imitation '  of  Buddha,  but 
teaches  how  a  man  may  become  a  Buddha. 

3: 


''.20 


Shanti  Deva 

done  this  work  to  hallow  my  own  thoughts,  not  designing 
it  for  the  welfare  of  others.  By  it  the  holy  impulse 
within  me  to  frame  righteousness  is  strengthened ;  but  if 
a  fellow  creature  should  see  it,  my  book  will  fulfil  another 
end  likewise." 

The  following  is  a  part  of  Shanti  Deva's  self-dedication 
(Pranidhana)  to  the  work  of  salvation : 
"  I  rejoice  exceedingly  in  all  creatures'  good  works  that 
end  the  sorrows  of  their  evil  lot ;  may  the  sorrowful  find 
happiness !  ...  In  reward  for  this  righteousness  that  I 
have  won  by  my  works  I  would  fain  become  a  soother  of 
all  the  sorrows  of  all  creatures.  .  .  .  The  Stillness  (Nirvana) 
lies  in  surrender  of  all  things,  and  my  spirit  is  fain  for 
the  Stillness ;  if  I  must  surrender  all,  it  is  best  to  give  it 
for  fellow-creatures.  I  yield  myself  to  all  living  creatures 
to  deal  with  me  as  they  list ;  they  may  smite  or  revile  me 
for  ever,  bestrew  me  with  dust,  play  with  my  body,  laugh 
and  wanton  ;  I  have  given  them  my  body,  why  shall  I 
care?  Let  them  make  me  do  whatever  works  bring  them 
pleasure ;  but  may  mishap  never  befall  any  of  them  by 
reason  of  me.  .  .  .  May  all  who  slander  me,  or  do  me 
hurt,  or  jeer  at  me,  gain  a  share  in  Enlightenment.  I 
would  be  a  protector  of  the  unprotected,  a  guide  of  way- 
farers, a  ship,  a  dyke,  and  a  bridge  for  them  who  seek  the 
further  Shore ;  a  lamp  for  them  who  need  a  lamp,  a  bed 
for  them  who  need  a  bed,  a  slave  for  all  beings  who  need 
a  slave.  ...  I  summon  to-day  the  world  to  the  estate  of 
Enlightenment,  and  meanwhile  to  happiness;  may  gods, 
demons,  and  other  beings  rejoice  in  the  presence  of  all 
the  Saviours  1 " 

It  is  true  that  the  old  Buddhist  love  of  loneliness  and 
scorn  of  the  flesh  find  expression  again  in  Shanti  Deva  ; 
but  there  is  a  sensitive  intimacy  in  his  gentle  words  that 

X  321 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

overcomes  the  coldness  of  the  early  Buddhist  asceticism, 
and  engages  our  sympathy  without  provoking  disgust : 
"  Trees  are  not  disdainful,  and  ask  for  no  toilsome  wooing ; 
fain  would  I  consort  with  those  sweet  companions !  Fain 
would  I  dwell  in  some  deserted  sanctuary,  beneath  a  tree 
or  in  caves,  that  I  might  walk  without  heed,  looking  never 
behind  !  Fain  would  I  abide  in  nature's  own  spacious  and 
lordless  lands,  a  homeless  wanderer,  free  of  will,  my  sole 
wealth  a  clay  bowl,  my  cloak  profitless  to  robbers,  fearless 
and  careless  of  my  body.  Fain  would  I  go  to  my  home 
the  graveyard,  and  compare  with  other  skeletons  my 
own  frail  body  1  for  this  my  body  will  become  so  foul 
that  the  very  jackals  will  not  approach  it  because  of  its 
stench.  The  bony  members  born  with  this  corporeal 
frame  will  fall  asunder  from  it,  much  more  so  my  friends. 
Alone  man  is  born,  alone  he  dies  ;  no  other  has  a  share  in 
his  sorrows.  What  avail  friends,  but  to  bar  his  way?  As 
a  wayfarer  takes  a  brief  lodging,  so  he  that  is  travelling 
through  the  way  of  existence  finds  in  each  birth  but  a 
passing  rest.  .  .  . 

*'  Enough  then  of  worldly  ways !  I  follow  in  the  path  of 
the  wise,  remembering  the  Discourse  upon  Heedfulness, 
and  putting  away  sloth.  To  overcome  the  power  of  dark- 
ness I  concentre  my  thought,  drawing  the  spirit  away  from 
vain  paths  and  fixing  it  straightly  upon  its  stay.  .  .  . 
"  We  deem  that  there  are  two  verities,  the  Veiled  Truth 
and  the  Transcendent  reality.  The  Reality  is  beyond  the 
range  of  the  understanding ;  the  understanding  is  called 
Veiled  Truth. ^  .  .  .  Thus  there  is  never  either  cessation 

^   Veiled  Truth,  t'.e.  savwritti-satya,  the  saguna  or  apara  vidya  of  the 
Vedanta,  and  the  Reality,  i.e.  faramdriha-satya,  the  nirguna  or  para 
vidya  of  the  Vedanta,  the  former  a  '  distinction  of  manifold  things,'  the 
latter  truth  '  which  is  in  the  unity '  (Tauler). 
322 


Plate  W 

FIGURES  OF  A  YAKKHl  OR  DRYAD,  AND  OF  A^" 

nAgarAja  or  serpent  king 

Guardian  spirits  of  the  Great  Thupa  at  Bharhut  (3rd-2nd 

century  b.c.) 


Sculpture  and  Painting 

or  existence ;  the  universe  neither  comes  to  be  nor  halts 
in  being.i  Life's  courses,  if  thou  regardest  them,  are  like 
dreams  and  as  the  plantain's  branches ;  in  reality  there  is 
no  distinction  between  those  that  are  at  rest  and  those  that 
are  not  at  rest.  Since  then  the  forms  of  being  are  empty, 
what  can  be  gained,  and  what  lost  ?  Who  can  be  honoured 
or  despised,  and  by  whom  ?  -  Whence  should  come  joy  or 
sorrow?  What  is  sweet,  what  bitter?  What  is  desire, 
and  where  shall  this  desire  in  verity  be  sought?  If  thou 
considerest  the  world  of  living  things,  who  shall  die 
therein  ?  who  shall  be  born,  who  is  born  ?  who  is  a  kins- 
man and  who  a  friend,  and  to  whom  ?  Would  that  my 
fellow-creatures  should  understand  that  all  is  as  the  void ! 
.  .  .  righteousness  is  gathered  by  looking  beyond  the 
Veiled  Truth." 


//.  SCULPTURE  AND  PAINTING 
As  little  as  Early  Buddhism  dreamed  of  an  expression  of 
its  characteristic  ideas  through  poetry,  drama,  or  music, 
so  little  was  it  imagined  that  the  arts  of  sculpture  and 
painting  could  be  anything  other  than  worldly  in  their 
purpose  and  effect.  The  hedonistic  prepossessions  are 
too  strong — and  this  is  also  true  of  other  contemporary 
Indian  thought — for  any  but  a  puritanical  attitude  toward 
the  arts  to  have  been  possible  to  the  philosopher.  The 
arts  were  regarded  as  a  sort  of  luxury.  Thus  we  find 
such  texts  as  the  following  : 

^  How  like  Bergson  the  thcjught  that  the  universe  never  halts  in 
being  ! 

-  "  He  who  deems  This  to  be  a  slayer,  and  he  who  thinks  This  to  be 
slain,  are  alike  without  discernment ;  This  slays  not,  neither  is  it  slain." 
— Bha^avad  Gitd,  ii,  19. 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

"  Beauty  is  nothing  to  me,  neither  the  beauty  of  the  body, 
nor  that  that  comes  of  dress. ^ 

"  If  a  Brother  or  Sister  sees  various  colours,  such  as 
wreaths,  dressed  images,  dolls,  clothes,  woodwork,  plaster- 
ing, paintings,  jewellery,  ivory-work,  strings,  leaf-cutting, 
they  should  not,  for  the  sake  of  pleasing  the  eye,  go  where 
they  will  see  these  colours  and  forms."  ^ 
Sisters  were  forbidden  to  look  on  '  conversation  pictures ' 
or  love  scenes ;  while  the  Brethren  were  only  permitted 
to  have  painted  on  the  monastery  walls  or  the  walls  of 
their  cave  retreats  the  representation  of  wreaths  and 
creepers,  never  of  men  and  women.  The  hedonistic 
foundation  of  these  injunctions  is  very  clearly  revealed  in 
a  passage  of  the  later  Visuddhi  Magga — for  the  Hinayana 
maintains  the  puritanical  tradition  to  the  end,  with  only 
slight  concession  in  admitting  the  figure  of  the  Buddha 
himself — in  a  passage  where  '  painters  and  musicians '  are 
classed  with  '  perfumers,  cooks,  elixir-producing  physicians 
and  other  like  persons  who  furnish  us  with  objects  of 
sense.' 

'  Early  Buddhist '  Art 

It  is  only  in  the  third  and  second  centuries  B.C.  that  we 
find  the  Buddhists  patronizing  craftsmen  and  employing 
art  for  edifying  ends.  From  what  has  already  been  said, 
however,  it  will  be  well  understood  that  there  had  not 
yet  come  into  being  any  truly  Buddhist  or  idealistic 
Brahmanical  religious  art,  and  thus  it  is  that  Early 
Buddhist  art  is  really  the  popular  Indian  art  of  the  time 

^  Infinitely  remote  from  a  modern  view,  which  was  also  current  in 
Mediaeval  India,  that  '  the  secret  of  all  art  .  .  .  lies  in  the  faculty  of 
Self-oblivion.' — Riciotto  Canudo,  Music  as  a  Religioji  of  the  Future. 
^  Dasa  Dhammika  Si/tta. 


Plate  X 


FIGURE  OF  YAKKHl,   A  DRYAD 

From  decorated  gateway  of  the  Sanchi  Stupa  (2nd  century  B.C.) 


324 


Early  Buddhist   Art 

adapted  to  Buddhist  ends,  while  one  special  phase  of 
art,  represented  by  the  capitals  of  the  Asoka  columns 
(Plate  P)  and  other  architectural  motifs  is  actually  of 
extra-Indian  origin. 

Such  non-Buddhist  art  as  we  have  evidence  of  in  the 
time  of  Asoka  is  concerned  with  the  cults  of  the  Nature 
spirits — the  Earth  Goddess,  the  Nagas  or  Serpent  Kings 
of  the  Waters,  and  the  Yakkha  kings  who  rule  the  Four 
Quarters.     The    Early    Buddhist    art   of    Bharhut    and 
Sanchi,  which  is  Asokan  or  a  little  later  than  Asokan, 
reflects  the  predominance  of  these  cults  in  the  low-relief 
figures  of  the  Yakkha  Guardians  of  the  Quarters  which 
the  entrance  gateways   (Plate  O)  of  the  ambulatory  are 
protected.     The  victory  of  Buddhism  over  the  animistic 
cults — of  course,  only  a  partial  victory,  for  these  cults 
flourish  even  to-day — is  suggested   by  the   presence  of 
these  Nature    spirits  (Plate  W)  acting  as  the  guardians 
of  Buddhist  shrines,  just  as  in  the  story  of  Buddha's  life, 
by  the  episode  of  the  Naga  Mucalinda  who  becomes  the 
Buddha's  protector  and  shelter  during  the  week  of  storms 
(Plate  A6).     The  Nature  spirits  seem  to  be  also  repre- 
sented with  a  purely  decorative,   or  perhaps  reverential 
intention,  in  the  case  of  the  dryad  figures  (Plate  X)  asso- 
ciated with  trees  on  the  upper  part  of  the  Sanchi  gates. 
These  beautiful  and  sensuous  figures  are  of  high  aesthetic 
rank,  powerful  and  expressive  :  but  in  their  vivid  pagan 
utterance  of  the  love  of  life,  how  little  can  we  call  them 
Early  Buddhist  art ! 

Apart  from  the  figures  of  Nature  spirits  and  the  repre- 
sentations of  animals,  decorative  or  protective,  the  art 
of  the  Sanchi  gateways  is  devoted  to  the  illustration  of 
edifying  legends,  the  stories  of  the  Buddha's  former  lives 
(Jatakas)  and  of  the  last  incarnation.     In  these  delicately 

325 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

executed  sculptures  in  low-relief  we  have  a  remarkable 
record  of  Indian  life  with  its  characteristic  environment, 
manner,  and  cults,  set  out  with  convincing  realism  and  a 
wealth  of  circumstantial  detail.  But  though  they  tell  us 
in  what  manner  the  holy  legend  was  visualized  within  a 
few  centuries  of  the  Buddha's  death,  they  are  fundamentally 
illustrations  of  edifying  episodes,  and  only  to  a  very 
limited  extent — far  less,  for  example,  than  at  Borobodur — 
can  be  said  to  express  directly  the  Buddhist  conceptions 
of  life  and  death. 

There  is,  however,  one  respect  in  which  that  view  is 
perfectly  reflected,  and  this  is  in  the  fact — strange  as  it 
may  at  first  appear — that  the  figure  of  the  Master  himself 
is  nowhere  represented.  Even  in  the  scene  which  illus- 
trates Siddhattha's  departure  from  his  home,^  Kanthaka's 
back  is  bare,  and  we  see  only  the  horse,  with  the  figures 
of  Channa,  and  of  the  attendant  Devas  who  lift  up  his 
feet  so  that  the  sound  of  his  tread  may  not  be  heard,  and 
who  bear  the  parasol  of  dominion  at  his  side.  The 
Buddha,  however,  may  be  symbolized  in  various  ways, 
as  by  the  Wisdom  Tree,  the  Umbrella  of  Dominion,  or, 
most  typically,  by  conventionally  represented  Footprints. 
It  will  be  seen  that  the  absence  of  the  Buddha  figure  from 
the  world  of  living  men — where  yet  remain  the  traces  of 
his  ministry — is  a  true  artistic  rendering  of  the  Master's 
guarded  silence  respecting  the  after-death  state  of  those 
who  have  attained  Nibbana — "  the  Perfect  One  is  released 
from  this,  that  his  being  should  be  gauged  by  the  measure 
of  the  corporeal  world,"  he  is  released  from  "  name  and 
form."  In  the  omission  of  the  Buddha  figure,  then,  this 
Early  Buddhist  art  is  truly  Buddhist,  but  in  nearly  all 

^  Depicted  on  the  central  horixontal  beam  of  the  east  Sanchi   gate 
(Plate  O). 

326 


STANDING   IMAGE  OF  THE  BUDDHA 

Anuradhapura  (2nd-3rd  century  a.d.) 


The  Buddhist  Primitives 

else  it  is  an  art  about  Buddhism,  rather  than  Buddhist 
art. 

The  Buddhist  Primitives 

Wc  have  explained  above  under  the  heading  *  Beginnings 
of  the  Mahayana,'  in  what  manner  the  Buddha  came 
to  be  regarded  as  a  personal  god,  and  how  the  Early- 
Buddhist  intellectual  discipline  is  gradually  modified  by 
the  growth  of  a  spirit  of  devotion  which  finds  expression 
in  worship  and  the  creation  of  a  cult.  This  may  to  a 
large  extent  reflect  the  growing  influence  of  the  lay  com- 
munity, and  it  is  paralleled  by  similar  tendencies  in  the 
development  of  other  contemporary  phases  of  belief. 
With  what  passionate  abandon  even  the  symbols  of  the 
*  Feet  of  the  Lord '  were  adored  will  appear  in  the 
illustration  (Plate  Q)  from  the  sculptures  of  AmaravatI, 
a  Buddhist  shrine  in  southern  India,  lavishly  decorated 
with  carvings  in  low  relief,  mostly  of  the  second  century 
A.D.  Feeling  such  as  this  could  not  but  demand  an 
object  of  worship  more  personal  and  more  accessible 
than  the  abstract  conception  of  one  whose  being  lay 
beyond  the  grasp  of  thought,  for  "exceeding  hard"  in 
the  words  of  the  Dhagavad  Gitd,  "  is  the  unshown 
way."  Thus  the  Buddha,  and  together  with  him  first  one 
and  then  another  of  the  Bodhisattva  saviours,  originally 
idealizations  of  particular  virtues,  came  to  be  regarded 
as  personal  gods  responsive  to  the  prayers  of  their 
worshippers,  and  extending  the  vessel  of  their  divine 
benevolence  and  infinite  compassion  to  all  who  seek  their 
aid.  This  was  the  human  need  which  alike  in  Buddhist 
and  Hindu  churches  determined  the  development  of 
iconography. 

The  form  of  the  Buddha  image — the  figure  of  the  seated 

327 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

yogi — was  determined  in  another  way.  We  have  already 
under  the  headings  of  '  Yoga '  and  '  Spiritual  Exercise,' 
explained  the  large  part  that  is  played,  even  in  Early 
Buddhism,  by  the  practice  of  contemplation.  At  a  very 
early  date,  probably  already,  in  fact,  in  the  time  of  Buddha, 
the  seated  yogi,  practising  a  mental  discipline  or  attaining 
the  highest  station  of  Samadhi,  must  have  represented  to 
the  Indian  mind  the  ultimate  achievement  of  spiritual 
effort,  and  the  attainment  of  the  Great  Quest.  And  so, 
when  it  was  desired  to  represent  by  a  visible  icon  the 
figure  of  Him-who-had-thus-attained,  the  appropriate 
form  was  ready  to  hand.  It  is  most  likely  that  images 
of  the  seated  Buddha  were  already  in  local  and  private 
use  as  cult  objects,  but  it  is  not  until  the  beginning  of  the 
Christian  era  that  they  begin  to  play  a  recognized  part  in 
official  Buddhist  art,^  and  the  Buddha  figure  is  introduced 
in  narrative  sculpture. 

It  is  very  probable  that  examples  of  these  earliest 
Buddhist  primitives  are  no  longer  extant,  but  even 
if  that  be  so,  the  splendid  and  monumental  figures 
of  Anuradhapura  and  Amaravati  of  perhaps  the  second 
century  a.d.,  still  reflect  almost  the  full  force  of  primitive 
inspiration.  Of  these  figures  there  is  none  finer — 
and  perhaps  nothing  finer  in  the  whole  range  of  Buddhist 
art — than  the  colossal  figure  at  Anuradhapura  illus- 
trated in  Plate  K.  With  this  figure  are  to  be  associated 
a  standing  image  of  Buddha  (Plate  E)  and  one  of 
a   Bodhisattva,   and   these  again  are    closely  related  to 

^  As  pointed  out  by  M.  Foucher,  the  image  on  the  Kanishka  reliquary 
'  indicates  an  already  stereotyped  arfr  .  .  .  and  this  votive  document 
suffices  to  throw  back  by  at  least  a  century  the  creation  of  the  plastic  type 
of  the  Blessed  One,  and  thus  to  take  us  back  to  the  first  century  before 
our  era.' — L'Origine  grecque  de  f  Image  du  Bouddha^  Paris,  19 13,  p.  31. 
328 


Graeco-Buddhist  Sculpture 

the  standing  Buddha  figures  of  Amaravatl.  In  these 
austere  images  the  moral  grandeur  of  the  Nibbana  ideal 
finds  its  own  direct  expression  in  monumental  forms, 
free  of  all  irrelevant  statement  or  striving  for  effect,  and 
these  are  prototypes  that  are  repeated  in  all  subsequent 
hieratic  Buddhist  art. 

Grccco-Buddliist  Sculpture 

From  these  works  we  must  return  to  a  consideration  of  the 
slightly  earlier,  better  known  and  far  more  abundant  art  of 
Gandhara,  generally  called  '  Graico-Buddhist.'  This  art 
is  so  called  because,  apart  from  the  seated  Buddha  form, 
which  must  of  course  be  wholly  Indian,  the  leading  types 
of  the  Buddhist  pantheon — viz.  the  standing  Buddha 
figure,  the  reclining  type,  the  figures  of  Bodhisattvas  and 
of  other  Buddhist  divinities,  as  well  as  the  types  of  com- 
position of  some  of  the  scenes  of  the  Buddha's  life,  and 
likewise  certain  details  of  architectural  ornament,  are  either 
directly  based  upon  or  strongly  influenced  by  Greeco-Roman 
prototypes.  Gandhara  art  is  in  fact  a  phase  of  provincial 
Roman  art,  mixed  with  Indian  elements,  and  adapted  to 
the  illustration  of  Buddhist  legends.  The  influence  of  the 
western  forms  on  all  later  Indian  and  Chinese  Buddhist 
art  is  clearly  traceable:  but  the  actual  art  of  Gandhara 
gives  the  impression  of  profound  insincerity,  for  the  com- 
placent expression  and  somewhat  foppish  costume  of  the 
Bodhisattvas,  and  the  efleminate  and  listless  gesture  of 
the  Buddha  figures  (Plate  AA)  but  faintly  express  the 
spiritual  energy  of  Buddhist  thought.  From  the  western 
point  of  view  also  the  art  must  be  regarded  as  even  more 
decadent  than  that  of  Roman  art  within  the  Roman  Empire : 
for  truly,  "  in  the  long  sands  and  flats  of  Roman  realism 
the  stream  of  Greek  inspiration  was  lost  for  ever,"  and 

329 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

there  is  no  better  evidence  of  this  than  the  art  of  Gandhara. 
It  is  of  interest  to  observe  also  the  manner  in  which  certain 
Indian  symbols  are  awkwardly  and  imperfectly  interpreted, 
for  this  affords  proof,  if  that  were  needed,  that  the  types  in 
question  are  of  older,  and  Indian  origin.  A  clear  case  is 
that  of  the  lotus  seat  which  is  the  symbol  of  the  Buddha's 
spiritual  purity  or  divinity.  The  seated  Buddha  of  Gand- 
hara is  insecurely  and  uncomfortably  balanced  on  the 
prickly  petals  of  a  disproportionately  small  lotus,  and  this 
defect  at  once  destroys  the  sense  of  repose  which  is  above 
all  essential  to  the  figure  of  the  yogi — who  is  likened  in 
Indian  books  to  the  flame  in  a  windless  spot  that  does  not 
flicker — and  in  immediate  conflict  with  the  Yoga  texts 
which  declare  that  the  seat  of  meditation  must  be  firm 
and  easy  {sthira-sukha).  We  see  before  us  the  work  of 
foreign  craftsmen  imitating  Indian  formulae  which  they 
did  not  understand.  We  cannot  think  of  this  as  an  original 
and  autochthonous  art,  despite  its  historical  interest,  and 
it  is  certainly  not  primitive  in  the  sense  in  which  this 
word  is  used  by  artists.* 

Iconography 

We  may  digress  here  to  describe  the  chief  types  of  Buddha 
imao-e.  The  seated  figure  has  three  main  forms,  the  first 
representing  pure  Samadhi,  the  highest  station  of  ecstasy 
— here  the  hands  are  crossed  in  the  lap  in  what  is  known 
as  dhydna  mudrd,  the  *  seal  of  meditation '  (Plate  K) ; 
the  second,  in  which  the  right  hand  is  moved  forward 
across  the  rio-ht  knee  to  touch  the  earth,  in  what  is  known 
as  the  bhumisparsa  mudrd,  the  '  seal  of  calling  the  earth 
to  witness  '  (Plates  Ta,  Zb) ;  the  third  with  the    hands 

^  "In  primitive  art  you  will  find  .  .  .  absence  of  representation,  absence 
of  technical  swagger,  sublimely  impressive  form."— Clive  Bell,  Art,  p.  22. 


^1^ 


7    **       '  ^  t 


330 


Plate  A  A 

THE  FIRST  SERMUX  (TURNING  THE  WHEEL 

OF  THE  LAW) 

Gandhara,  ist-2nd  century  a.d. 

British  Museum 


Iconography 

raised  before  the  chest  in  the  position  known  as  dharma- 
cah-a    7nudm,    the    'seal   of   turning   the   wheel    of    the 
law'   (Plates    B,   C,  AA).     In  a  fourth   type   the   right 
hand  is  raised    and    the    palm  turned  outward,    making 
the  gesture  known  as  abJiaya  micdrd,   the  'seal   ofi  dis- 
pelling fear.'    The  last  pose  is  characteristic  for  standing 
figures,     where    the    left   hand   grasps   the   end  of   the 
robe   (Plates  E,  Y).     In   Bodhisattva   figures  the  right 
hand    is   very   often    extended    in    the  va?^    vmdrd    or 
'seal   of  charity'  (Plate  R),  while  the'  left  hand  holds 
an    attribute,    such    as    the    lotus    of    Avalokitesvara 
(Plates    R,    Za).      But    the    variety  of    Bodhisattvas  is 
great.     Another  characteristic  pose  is  known  as  vitarka 
mudrdy    the    '  seal   of  argument,'    indicating    the   act  of 
teaching  (Plate   Zc).      Other   forms   are  generally    self- 
explanatory,  like   the   sword   of  wisdom   which    is   held 
aloft  by   ManjusrI   (Plate  DD)    to  cleave  the   darkness 
of  ignorance.     It  will  also  be  noticed  that  the  Buddha 
images  have  certain  physical  peculiarities,  of  which  the 
most  conspicuous  is  the  nskiitsha  or  protuberance  on  the 
top  of  the  skull.     Technically  this  appears  to  be  derived 
from   a  western    form   of  headdress,  but  in  significance 
it  is  to  be  classed  with  the  physical  characters  attributed 
by   Indian  physiognomists  to  the  Superman,  the  Maha- 
purusha.    This  icsknlska  serves  to  distinguish  the  Buddha 
figure  from  that  of  a  mere  Brother,  for  the  heads  of  the 
Bhikkhu   (Plate  L)  is  always  shaved  bare   and  without 
the  Buddha's  bump  of  wisdom.      The  Buddha  type  [e.g. 
Plate  E)  is  distinguished,  on  the  other  hand  from  that 
of  the  Bodhisattva,  in  whom  the  ushnisha  isalso  evident, 
by    the   difference    of    costume:    that  of  the  Buddha  is 
monastic,  while   that  of  the  Bodhisattva  is  the  full  and 
jewelled  garb  of  a  king  or  god.     In  all  three  cases  the 

331 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

ears  are  pierced  and  elongated,  but  the  Bodhisattva 
alone  wears  earrings.  The  monastic  costume  of  the 
Buddha  and  the  Brethren  consists  of  three  strips  of 
cloth,  forming  an  undergarment  {antaravdsaka)  worn 
about  the  loins  like  a  skirt,  and  fastened  by  a 
girdle,  an  upper  garment  {lUtarasan^a)  covering  the 
breast  and  shoulders  and  falling  below  the  knees 
and  a  cloak  {sanghati)  worn  over  the  two  other 
garments.  It  is  this  outer  cloak  which  is  naturally- 
most  conspicuous  in  the  sculptured  images.  In  standing 
figures  the  drapery  is  treated  with  elaboration,  and  the 
more  so  the  stronger  the  western  influence — being  based 
on  the  drapery  of  the  well-known  Lateran  Sophocles,  and 
amounting  to  absolute  identity  of  design  between  the 
Graeco-Christian  Christ  and  the  Graeco-Buddhist  Buddha  : 
but  in  a  majority  of  typically  Indian  figure  the  drapery  is 
almost  transparent,  and  indicated  by  a  mere  line.  In 
Gupta  images  especially  the  whole  figure  is  plainly 
revealed  (Plates  B,  E).  The  upper  robes  are  worn  in  two 
different  ways,  in  the  one  case  covering  both  shoulders, 
in  the  other  leaving  the  right  shoulder  bare.  Another 
conspicuous  feature  of  Buddha  images  is  the  nimbus  or 
glory,  which  assumes  various  forms,  the  early  types  being 
plain,  those  of  the  Gupta  period  elaborately  decorated ; 
this  again  appears  to  be  a  motif  that  is  technically 
western,  at  the  same  time  that  it  reflects  the  traditions 
regarding  the  '  Buddha  rays '  and  the  transfiguration,  and 
from  a  visionary  standpoint  may  be  called  realistic. 

Classic  Buddhist  Art 

The  various  types  of    Buddhist    art   to  which  we  have 

so  far  referred,  from  this  time  onward  draw  closer  and 

closer  together,  to  constitute  one  national  art  and  style 

332 


L 

Plate  B  B 


THE  BUDDHA 
Cambodia,  I3lh-i4th  century 
Collection  of  Mr  Victor  Golonbew 


33a 


Classic  Buddhist  Art 

which  extend  throughout  Indian  in  the  Gupta  period,  and 
form  the  main  foundation  of  the  colonial  and  missionary- 
phases  of  Buddhist  art  in  Siam  and  Cambodia,  Burma, 
Java,  China,  and  Japan.  One  of  the  most  marked  characters 
of  Gupta  art  is  the  fullness  and  suavity  of  all  its  forms,  well 
exemplified  in  the  two  figures  illustrated  on  Plates  B,  E  ; 
the  latter  of  these  is  a  standing  figure  from  Mathura,  the 
other  a  seated  image  from  the  site  of  the  old  monastery 
of  the  Deer  Park  at  Benares,  where  the  first  sermon 
was  preached.  It  will  be  seen  that  by  this  time  the 
foreign  elements  introduced  by  way  of  Gandhara  are 
completely  absorbed  and  Indianized,  and  in  the  words  of 
Professor  Oscar  Miinsterberg,  "  developed  under  national 
and  Buddhist  inspiration  into  a  new  and  genuine  art." 
From  Indian  Gupta  art  there  is  an  imperceptible  transi- 
tion to  Indian  classic,  which  is  more  niouveinentie  and 
distinguished  by  more  slender  forms  and  greater  delicacy 
and  mastery  of  technique.  It  is  in  the  late  Gupta  and 
Early  Classic  painting  of  Ajanta  that  Indian  Buddhist 
art  which  began  with  the  creation  of  the  seated  figure, 
attains  its  final  perfection  and  completes  its  cycle.  These 
paintings,  like  the  low  reliefs  of  Sanchi  and  Bharhut, 
chiefly  illustrate  the  stories  of  the  Buddha's  former  birth 
and  last  incarnation.  There  is  indicated,  however,  a  long 
development  in  doctrine  and  in  technique.  The  Buddha 
figure  is  freely  represented,  but  the  hieratic  type  is 
generally  subordinate  to  that  of  the  Bodhisattva  as  the 
living  and  moving  hero  in  the  stories  of  human  and 
animal  life,  where  he  exhibits  every  possible  perfection  of 
character.  What  is  even  more  noteworthy  is  the  fact 
that  Ajanta  painting  does  not  echo  the  disparagement  of 
life  which  is  so  conspicuous  in  the  Pali  Suttas — where  the 
world  of  living  beings  is  so  bitterly  denounced  as  'unclean ' 

333 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

— but  represents  this  life  with  passionate  sympathy  for  all 
its  sensuous  perfection.  Praise  of  the  beauty  of  women 
could  not  be  more  plainly  spoken,  and  the  sound  of  music 
is  everywhere :  no  reference  is  made  to  age,  and  there 
is  no  insistence  upon  death  or  suffering,  for  human  and 
animal  life  alike  are  always  represented  at  the  highest  levels 
of  experience.  It  is  in  quite  another  way  that  Buddhist  ideals 
are  here  expressed — by  the  ever  present  sense  of  tragedy : 
for  the  very  emphasis  on  youth  and  beauty  is  the  revelation 
of  their  transcience.  The  life  of  the  world  is  depicted 
with  such  transparency — "  as  if  in  a  mountain  fastness 
there  were  a  pool  of  water,  clear,  translucent,  and  serene" 
— that  it  appears  like  the  substance  of  a  dream,  too  frail 
to  grasp,  however  heaven-like  its  forms.  And  there 
moves  through  these  enchanted  scenes  the  figure  of  one 
whose  heart  is  set  on  a  more  distant  goal,  and  feels  an 
infinite  compassion  for  all  born  beings  whose  sweet 
delights  are  subject  to  mortality  (Plate  CC).  It  is 
just  because  the  mediaeval  Buddhist  consciousness  has 
learnt  so  well  to  understand  the  value  of  the  world  that 
the  fieure  of  One  who  seeks  to  save  all  creatures  from 
this  radiant  phenomenal  life  appears  so  tragic. 
" '  It  is  not  that  I  do  not  value  these  my  tusks,'  says  the 
Bodhisattva  elephant  in  the  Chaddanta  Jdtaka,  '  nor 
that  I  desire  the  status  of  a  god,  but  because  the  tusks  of 
Infinite  Wisdom  are  dearer  to  me  a  thousand  times  than 
these,  that  I  yield  you  these,  good  hunter.' " 
It  is  to  be  observed,  too,  that  the  spiritual  Superman  is 
never  poor  and  despised,  but  always  freely  endowed  with 
the  lordship  and  the  wealth  of  the  world,  he  does  not 
scorn  the  company  of  beautiful  women.  Dha7'ma,  artha, 
and  kimza,  social  virtue,  wealth,  and  the  pleasures  of  the 
senses  are  his,  and  yet  the    Bodhisattva's  thoughts  are 

334 


Plate  C  C 


BODHISATTVA,   PERHAPS  AVALOKITESVARA 
Ajanta  fresco  (6th-7th  century  a.d.) 


334 


Classic  Buddhist  Art 

not  diverted  from  the  fourdi  'human  end'  of  viokska, 
salvation.  So  far  from  the  rich  man  representing  the 
type  of  him  who  cannot  enter  the  kingdom  of  heaven, 
riches  and  power  are  represented  as  the  natural  evidence 
of  goodness;  and  without  such  riches  and  such  power 
how  could  the  Bodhisattva's  supernatural  generosity  be 
sufficiently  displayed  ? 

Up  to  this  point,  of  course,  we  have  spoken  rather  of 
ethics  than  of  art.  It  is  not,  however,  the  literally  Buddhist 
subject-matter  of  Ajanta  art  that  makes  it  so  profoundly 
moving — we  do  not  need  to  know  what  the  paintings  were 
about  before  we  are  able  to  feel  their  significance.  Artists 
painted  thus,  not  because  they  were  Buddhists,  but  because 
they  were  artists.  The  intellectual  and  logical  content, 
the  narrative  element  is  so  entirely  subordinate  to  direct 
emotion  that  it  is  sometimes  difficult  to  realize  that  the 
subject  of  all  the  Ajanta  paintings  is  really  Buddhist. 
It  is  always  easy  for  the  artisan  to  illustrate  a  creed  or  a 
legend,  but  only  when  he  is  an  artist  is  he  able  at  the 
same  time  to  express  the  deeper  and  fundamental  reality 
upon  which  all  creed  and  ritual  are  based.  Certainly  the 
Early  Buddhists,  who  hated  'conversation  pictures,'  that 
is  to  say,  love  scenes  such  as  we  often  see  at  Ajanta,  and 
all  who  adhere  to  hedonistic  views  of  art,  might  utterly 
condemn  the  whole  work  as  worldly,  or  even  fleshly. 
We  have  already  seen,  however,  that  dogmatic  content 
has  no  necessary  connexion  with  the  spiritual  significance 
of  a  work  of  art,  for  nothing  could  well  be  less  spiritual 
than  the  conspicuously  '  Buddhist '  art  of  Gandhara. 
After  the  seventh  century  Buddhism  declined  in  India 
proper,  and  continued  to  flourish  only  in  Bengal,  Nepal 
and  Ceylon,  and  in  the  eastern  colonies.  The  widely 
distributed  and  splendid    monuments    of    Indian    classic 

335 


Buddha  (§f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

sculpture  are  thus — as  at  Elephanta,  Ellora,  and  Mamal- 
lapuram — almost  entirely  Hindu  in  subject.  It  is  only 
here  and  there  that  there  survive  a  few  precious  relics  of 
purely  Indian  Buddhist  sculpture  of  the  classic  age. 
Probably  the  best  of  these  is  the  little  Sinhalese  bronze 
of  Avalokitesvara  reproduced  on  Plate  Zc,  while  the 
rather  less  impressive,  but  very  gracious  Sinhalese  figure 
of  Maitreya  reproduced  on  Plate  S  may  be  a  little  later. 
The  Nepalese  figures  of  Buddha  and  Avalokitesvara, 
illustrated  on  Plates  C,  R,  are  closely  related  to  Ajanta 
types,  and  range  from  the  eighth  to  the  eleventh  century, 
and  from  the  eleventh  to  the  thirteenth  century  there 
are  preserved  several  examples  of  beautifully  illustrated 
Buddhist  palm-leaf  manuscripts  in  the  same  style.  Sub- 
sequent to  this  the  Buddhist  art  of  Nepal  is  modified 
by  Tibetan,  Chinese,  and  perhaps  also  Persian  influences. 
Buddhist  art  persisted  in  Magadha  and  Bengal  only  until 
the  final  victories  of  Islam  involved  the  destruction  of  the 
monasteries  in  the  twelfth  century. 

Colonial  hidian  Art 

India  has  been  the  source  of  a  colonial  art  of  great  im- 
portance, developed  from  the  sixth  century  onward  in 
Burma,  Siam,  Cambodia,  Laos,  and  particularly  in  Java : 
and  the  great  part  of  this  colonial  art  is  Buddhist.  The 
most  important  school  is  the  Javanese.  Java  was  colonized 
by  Brahmanical  Hindus  in  the  early  centuries  of  the  Chris- 
tian era  and  largely  converted  to  Buddhism  a  little  later; 
the  two  forms  of  belief  existed  side  by  side  until  the  Muham- 
madan  conquests  of  the  fifteenth  century.  The  largest  and 
finest  Buddhist  monument  is  the  stupa  of  Borobodur; 
here  the  procession  galleries  are  adorned  by  a  series  of 
some  2000  bas-reliefs  illustrating  the  life  of  the  Buddha 


Plate  O  O 


MANJUSRi   BODHISATTVA 

Java  (14th  century  a.u.) 

Berlin 


336 


Colonial  Indian  Art 

according  to  the  Lalitvaistara^  as  well  as  various  legends 
from  the  Divydvaddna  and  the  Jdtakas.     The  reliefs  are 
so  extensive  that  if  laid  end  to  end  they  would  cover  a 
space  of   more  than  two  miles.     We  have  here  a  third 
great  illustrated  Bible,   similar  in  range,  but   more   ex- 
tensive than  the   reliefs   of  Sanchi  and  the  paintings  of 
Ajanta.     This  is  a  '  supremely  devout  and  spontaneous 
art,'  naturally  lacking  the  austerity  and  the  abstraction  of 
the  early  Buddhist  primitives,  but  marvellously  gracious, 
decorative,  and  sincere.     The  episodes   represented   are 
by    no   means  so  exclusively   courtly  as    is  the  case  at 
Ajanta,  but  cover  the  whole  circle  of  Indian  life  alike  in 
city   and  village.     The  narrative   element   is  more  con- 
spicuous than  at  Ajanta,  the  craftsmen  adhering  closely  to 
the  book.     But  "  every  group  and  every  figure  are  abso- 
lutely true  and  sincere  in  expression  of  face,  gesture,  and 
pose  of  body;    and   the  actions   which  link  the  various 
groups   and    single  features    together  are   strongly  and 
simply  told,  without  effort  or  striving  for  effect — it  was 
so,  because  so  it  could  only  be  "  I  ^     Buddhist  art  in  Java 
continued  to  flourish  for  many  centuries,  and  many  works 
of  great  beauty  are  still  preserved,  both  stone  reliefs  and 
sculptures  in  the  round,   and  smaller  and   very  delicate 
bronzes.     Amongst  the  later  works  none  are  more  im- 
pressive than  the  ManjusrI — the  Bodhisattva  who  holds 
aloft   the   sword  of  wisdom — reproduced  here  on   Plate 
DD,    but   I  cannot   agree    that   the    well-known  Prajna- 
paramita,  though  still  beautiful,  is  '  one  of  the  most  spiritual 
creations  of  any  art,'  but  much  rather,  as  another  critic 
has  suggested,   think  of  this  comfortable  and  bejewelled 
gracious  figure  as  '  all  too  human.' 

^  Havell,  Indian  Sculpture  and  Paintin^^  p.  ii8.     Many  good  repro- 
ductions will  be  found  in  the  same  volume. 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Tke  Far  East 

The  Buddhist  art  of  China  is  on  another  footing,  for  not- 
withstanding it  repeats  the  forms  of  Indian  art,  China  had 
already  an  old,  and,  from  a  technical  standpoint,  exceed- 
ingly accomplished  art,  and  a  profound  philosophy  of  her 
own,  before  the  Buddhist  pilgrims  and  missionaries  carried 
across  the  wastes  of  Central  Asia  the  impulse  to  a  new 
development  of  thought  and  of  plastic  art;  thus,  although 
there  were  at  one  time  many  thousands  of  Indians  in  China, 
and  some  of  these  were  Buddhist  artists,  yet  Chinese 
Buddhist  art  is  not,  like  Javanese,  entirely  Indian,  but 
essentially  a  new  thing,  almost  as  much  Chinese  as 
Indian. 

The  first  introduction  of  Buddhism  took  place  in  the  first 
century  a.d.  In  the  second  century  a  golden  statue,  perhaps 
of  the  Buddha,  was  brought  into  China  from  the  west ;  in  the 
same  century  a  Buddhist  mission  reached  China  from 
Parthia.  Buddhism  did  not  however  immediately  obtain  a 
firm  hold,  and  the  Chinese  were  then  as  now  partly  Confu- 
cianist,  partly  Taoist  and  partly  Buddhist.  Naturally  as  the 
early  Buddhist  influences  came  through  western  Asia,  early 
Chinese  Buddhist  art  exhibits  some  relation  to  the  Graeco- 
Buddhist  art  of  Gandhara  ;  but  few  traces  of  any  work 
older  than  the  fifth  century  now  remain,  and  by  that  time 
the  Graeco-Roman  elements  were  almost  negligible,  or 
traceable  only  in  minor  details  of  ornament  and  technique. 
Under  the  Northern  Wei  dynasty  of  the  early  fifth  cen- 
tury, however,  there  is  an  immense  artistic  activity,  and 
the  mountains  and  caves  of  Tatong  are  carved  with 
countless  images  of  Buddhas  and  Bodhisattvas  of  all 
sizes,  from  miniature  to  colossal,  and  these  works  are  the 
typical  Chinese  Buddhist  primitives.  One  colossal  figure 
338 


Plate  E  E 


BODIIISATTVA 

Chinese,  school  of  Long-men  (Sth  century) 

Cologne 


338 


The  Far  East 

is  some  ninety  feet  in  height  and  here  the  form  is  full  and 
round,  but  some  of  the  smaller  figures  are  very  delicate 
and  slender.  One  of  the  features  of  immediate  Indian 
origin  is  to  be  recognized  in  the  gigantic  figures  of  door- 
guardians  represented  as  muscular  giants  protecting  the 
entrances  to  the  Buddhist  caves.  While  in  these  figures 
the  muscles  are  conspicuously  developed  and  the  body 
bare,  the  Buddha  and  Bodhisattva  figures  are  always 
clothed  and  the  details  of  the  anatomy  suppressed  and 
generalized.  Similar  decorated  caves  are  found  at  Long- 
men  near  the  town  of  Honan,  a  later  North  Wei  capital ; 
these  excavations  and  sculptures  belong  to  the  sixth 
century.  The  inscriptions  recording  the  various  donations 
show  that  these  works  were  commissioned  by  the  king, 
the  queen,  the  nobles,  and  even  by  individuals  of  the  lower 
classes.  A  great  development  of  Buddhist  sculpture  also 
took  place  in  Korea.  These  figures  like  those  already 
described  are  hewn  out  of  the  living  rock,  in  an  environ- 
ment of  great  natural  beauty,  far  from  the  haunts  of  men. 
Buddhist  art  in  India,  as  at  Ajanta,  and  still  more  in  the 
Far  East,  is  constantly  thus  associated  with  naturally  im- 
pressive scenes :  and  were  it  not  for  this  love  of  Nature 
and  for  the  institution  of  pilgrimage  to  sacred  and  far 
away  sites,  it  would  be  difficult  to  account  for  the  great 
part  which  is  played  in  Chinese  and  Japanese  art  by  land- 
scape painting  somewhat  later. 

It  is  from  Korea  that  Buddhist  thouofht  and  art  were 
introduced  to  Japan  in  the  sixth  century.  The  new  faith 
met  with  considerable  opposition.  The  hero  of  the  period 
of  the  first  introduction  of  Buddhism  to  Japan  is  the 
renowned  Prince  Wumayado,  who  prepared  the  seventeen 
articles  of  the  Japanese  constitution,  and  wrote  some 
remarkable  commentaries  on  the  Buddhist  Sutras,  setting 

339 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

forth  the  teachings  of  Nagarjuna :  he  is  still  worshipped 
by  craftsmen  and  artisans  as  Patron  of  the  Arts.  The 
only  remains  of  this  period,  however,  are  the  colossal 
bronze  Buddha  of  Ankoin,  which  has  suffered  many 
vicissitudes  and  is  too  much  restored  to  afford  a  very 
definite  idea  of  the  earliest  Japanese  Buddhist  art :  and 
the  famous  temple  of  Horiuji  near  Nara,  which  is  rich 
alike  in  contemporary  sculpture  and  paintings.  "We 
find  in  these  works,"  says  Okakura,  "a  spirit  of  intense 
refinement  and  purity,  such  as  only  great  religious  feeling 
could  have  produced.  For  divinity,  in  this  early  phase 
of  national  realization,  seemed  like  an  abstract  ideal, 
unapproachable  and  mysterious,  and  even  its  distance 
from  the  naturalesque  gives  to  art  an  awful  charm."  We 
are  reminded  here  that  all  the  early  Buddhist  art  of  the 
Far  East  is  more  purely  hieratic  and  abstract  than  is  the 
case,  for  example,  at  Ajanta,  to  which  the  painting  at 
Horiuji  is  otherwise  so  closely  related ;  and  the  explana- 
tion is  not  far  to  seek.  For  when  the  artists  of  the  Far 
East,  together  with  the  new  religion,  "  adopted  the  Indian 
formulas  and  symbols,  they  kept  these  separate  from  the 
ordinary  practice  of  their  art,  and  so  developed  a  special- 
ized hieratic  quality,  the  rarest  and  most  remote  perhaps 
the  art  of  the  painter  has  ever  expressed."  Whereas,  "to 
the  Indian  mind  Buddha  and  his  disciples  were  more 
actual  figures,  with  positive  relations  to  their  own  social 
world.  The  places  where  they  lived  and  taught  were  to 
them  definite  places,  to  which  they  themselves  could  at 
any  moment  make  pilgrimages,"  ^  and  thus  there  was  not 
in  India  that  "separation  of  social  and  religious  tradi- 
tions "  which  is  apparent  in  Chinese  art,  as  it  is  likewise 
evident  in  European  religious  sculpture  and  painting.  Of 
^  W.  Rothenstein,  in  AJanfa  Frescoes  (India  Society),  London,  1915. 
340 


340 


I'LAih     1       i- 

THE  BUDDHA 

Central  figure  of  a  triptych  in  the  Tofukuji  temple,  Kj^oto, 

Japan,  ascribed  to  \Vu  Tao-tzu  (Chinese,  8th  century') 

From  Tajuna,  Selected  Relics  of  Japanese  Art,  Vol  I 


The  Far  East 

two  early  Japanese  paintings  of  Samantabhadra  and   of 
Manjusri,  Mr  Binyon  remarks : 

"The  fluid  lines  of  form  and  drapery  are  of  an  indescrib- 
able sweetness  and  harmony,  as  if  sensitive  themselves 
with  life;  the  colour  also  discloses  itself  as  part  of  the 
calmly  glowing  life  within,  veined  with  fine  lines  of  gold, 
not  as  something  applied  from  without.  Such  images,  as 
these,  of  which  this  early  Buddhist  art  has  created  not  a 
few,  images  of  the  infinite  of  wisdom  and  of  tenderness, 
not  only  express  the  serenity  of  the  spirit,  but  have  in  a 
degree  unreached  in  any  other  art  the  power  of  including 
the  spectator  in  their  spiritual  spell :  to  contemplate  them 
is  to  be  strangely  moved,  yet  strangely  tranquillized."  ^ 
We  must  however  return  for  a  time  to  China,  to  consider 
the  classic  art  of  the  T'ang  epoch  (a.d.  618-905),  for  this 
is  the  great  creative  age  of  the  Far  East,  by  which  the 
whole  future  development  both  of  Chinese  and  Japanese 
art  is  mainly  determined  :  the  part  that  Greece  has  played 
for  Europe  was  played  for  Japan  by  China. 
"The  T'ang  era  stands  in  history  for  the  period  of  China's 
greatest  external  power — the  period  of  her  greatest  poetry 
and  of  her  grandest  and  most  vigorous,  if  not,  perhaps, 
her  most  perfect,  art.  Buddhism  now  took  hold  on  the 
nation  as  it  never  did  before,  and  its  ideals  pervaded  the 
imagination  of  the  time.  China  was  never  in  such  close 
contact  with  India;  numbers  of  Indians,  including  three 
hundred  Buddhist  monks,  actively  preaching  the  faith, 
were  to  be  found  in  the  T'ang  capital  of  Loyang.  And 
Buddhist  ideas  permeate  T'ang  painting."  - 
The  T'ang  sculpture  is  best  displayed  in  the  sculptured 
caves  of  Longmen,  near  Honan,  similar  in  method  to  the 


^  Binyon,  Painting  iri  the  Far  East ^  ed.  2,  p.  105. 
2  Ibid. 


341 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

earlier  excavations  at  Tatong;  from  these  we  reproducehere 
the  central  figure  of  a  colossal  Buddha  (Plate  F),  and  of 
the  same  school  but  unknown  provenance  the  gracious  and 
almost  coquettish  figure  of  a  Bodhisattva  (Plate  EE),  now  in 
the  museum  at  Cologne.  Many  other  detached  examples  of 
T'ang  Buddhist  sculpture  may  be  seen  in  the  European  and 
American  museums.  Intermediate  in  date  between  the  Wei 
and  T'ang  periods  is  the  monumental  stele  in  black  marble, 
in  the  collection  of  M.  Goloubew,  reproduced  on  Plate  G. 
What  little  we  know  of  the  painting  of  the  T'ang  period 
is  dominated  by  the  great  name  of  Wu  Tao-tzu,  of  whom 
a  few  more  or  less  authentic  works  are  preserved  in  Japan. 
One  of  these,  which  if  not  actually  the  work  of  Wu  Tao-tzu, 
is  at  any  rate  a  masterwork  of  T'ang,  is  the  beautiful  Buddha 
figure  of  the  Tofukuji  temple  in  Kyoto,  reproduced  on 
Plate  D.  Another  painting  by  a  somewhat  later  artist, 
but  thought  to  be  after  Wu  Tao-tzu,  is  the  Bodhisattva 
Kwanyin,  the  Indian  Avalokitesvara,  reproduced  on 
Plate  HH.  At  an  early  date  the  male  Avalokitesvara  was 
interpreted  in  China  as  a  feminine  divinity  and  saviouress, 
and  there  is  a  long  and  charming  Chinese  legend  which 
recounts  her  life  as  an  earthly  princess.  Since  Kwanyin 
is  a  gracious  saviouress  who  hears  all  cries  and  answers 
all  prayers,  it  will  readily  be  understood  that  she  became 
one  of  the  most  popular  of  all  Chinese  and  Japanese  Budd- 
hist divinities,  and  the  subject  of  innumerable  paintings. 
It  will  be  noticed  in  our  example  (from  the  collection  of 
Mr  C.  L.  Freer,  and  reproduced  by  his  kindness)  that  the 
goddess  holds  a  basket  with  a  fish  in  her  outstretched 
hand,  whereas  in  a  majority  of  representations  she  carries 
a  willow  spray  or  a  phial  of  the  water  of  life.^     A  more 

^  The  cult  of  Kwanyin  and  the  significance  of  the  fish  are  discussed  by 
R.  F.  Johnston,  Buddhist  China,  ch.  xi. 


Plate  G  G 

KWANYIN 

Gilt  bronze,  mediaeval  Japanese 
Collection  of  Mr  H.  Gitly 


The  Far  East 

famous  work  by  Wu  Tao-tzu  was  the  '  Death  of  Buddha,' 
painted  in  a.d.  742,  of  which  "We  know  at  least  the  com- 
position, for  Wu  Tao-tzu's  design  was  repeated  by  more 
than  one  early  master  of  Japan,  and  the  original  is  described 
in  Chinese  books.  In  the  British  Museum  is  a  large 
painting  of  this  subject,  by  the  hand  of  a  great  artist 
entirely  modelled  on  the  art  of  T'ang.  Magnificent  indeed 
is  the  conception.  The  whole  of  creation  is  wailing  and 
lamenting  around  the  body  of  the  Buddha,  who  lies  peace- 
ful in  the  midst,  having  entered  into  Nirvana,  under  a  great 
tree,  the  leaves  of  which  are  withered  where  they  do  not 
cover  him.  Saints  and  disciples,  kings,  queens,  priests  and 
warriors,  weep  and  beat  their  breasts;  angels  are  grieving 
in  the  air ;  even  the  beasts  of  the  field  and  the  forest,  the 
tiger,  the  panther,  the  horse,  the  elephant,  show  sorrow  in 
all  their  limbs,  rolling  with  moans  upon  the  ground  ;  and 
the  birds  cry.  An  ecstasy  of  lamentation  impassions  the 
whole  work.  What  must  have  been  the  effect  of  the 
original  ?  "  ^ 

Three  hundred  other  painters'  names  of  the  T'ang  period 
are  known,  but  not  their  works.  The  greatest  of  these  is 
Wang  Wei,  who  is  a  painter  of  landscape,  and  probably 
supreme  in  China,  as  the  Chinese  are  supreme  in  this  art 
in  the  world.  It  should  be  remarked  that  the  Chinese 
landscape  painter's  interests  are  far  from  topographical ; 
he  uses  the  familiar  scenes  or  lonely  mountains  and  forests 
to  interpret  and  communicate  a  mood,  or  express  a  philo- 
sophic concept.  It  is  in  this  way  that  landscape  art,  though 
it  is  not  specifically  Buddhist,  lends  itself  to  religious 
sentiment.  There  is  a  Sung  painting  of  the  thirteenth 
century  called  the  Evening  Chime  of  the  Distant  Temple. 
"A  range  of  mountains  lifts  its  rugged  outline  in  the 
*  Binyon,  Painting  in  the  Far  East. 

343 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

twilight,  the  summits  accentuated  and  distinct  against 
the  pale  sky,  the  lower  parts  lost  in  mist,  among  which 
woods  emerge  or  melt  along  the  uneven  slopes.  Some- 
where among  those  woods,  on  high  ground,  the  curved 
roof  of  a  temple  is  visible.  It  is  just  that  silent  hour 
when  travellers  say  to  themselves, '  The  day  is  done,'  and 
to  their  ears  come  from  the  distance  the  expected  sound 
of  the  evening  bell.  The  subject  is  essentially  the  same 
as  that  which  the  poetic  genius  of  Jean  Fran9ois  Millet 
conceived  in  the  twilight  of  Barbizon,  at  the  hour  when 
the  Angelus  sounds  over  the  plain  from  the  distant  church 
of  Chailly." 

But  as  another  critic  has  remarked  on  this  : 
"  What  a  difference  in  the  treatment !  Millet  places  Man 
in  the  foreground,  explaining  the  content  of  the  picture 
by  human  action,  but  the  Chinese  artist  needs  no  figure, 
nothing  but  a  hint ;  the  spectator  must  complete  the 
thought  himself." 

The  world  of  Nature  at  this  time  had  come  to  mean  for 
the  Chinese  artist  something  other  than  we  are  accustomed 
to  think  of  in  connexion  with  European  landscape.  In 
one  way  he  uses  Nature's  forms  as  the  phrases  of  a  philo- 
sophical language,  likening  mountain  and  mist,  dragon 
and  tiger,  to  the  Great  Extremes  :  so  that  while  the 
modern  critic  can  perhaps  appreciate  much  of  their  purely 
aesthetic  quality,  it  is  only  by  an  effort  that  he  realizes 
the  depth  of  suggestion  and  mystical  significance  which 
these  monochrome  brush  drawings  have  for  the  Chinese 
student  steeped  in  Buddhist  nature  lore  and  Taoist  philo- 
sophy. Very  often  also  even  this  underlying  philosophical 
significance  is,  so  to  say,  unexpressed.  In  any  case, 
"The  life  of  nature  and  of  all  non-human  things  is  re- 
garded   in   itself;    its    character    contemplated    and    its 

344 


PLATr  ir  H 

KWANYIN 

Chinese  painting,  ioth-i2th  century,  after 

W'u  Tao-tzu 

Collection  of  Mr  C.  L.  Freer 


344 


The  Far  East 

beauty  cherished  for  its  own  sake,  not  for  its  use  and 
service  in  the  life  of  man.  There  is  no  infusion  of  human 
sentiment  into  the  pictures  of  birds  and  beasts,  of  the 
tiger  roaring  in  the  solitudes,  of  the  hawk  and  eagle  on 
the  rocky  crag ;  rarely  is  there  any  touch  of  the  sports- 
man's interest  which  has  inspired  most  European  pictures 
of  this  kind."  ^ 

Even  the  smallest  flower,  the  most  trivial  insect  can  thus 
be  represented  with  such  intensity  of  vision  as  to  seem  a 
world  in  itself:  and  this  world  is  a  part  of  humanity, 
as  man  is  a  part  of  the  world  by  nature.  The  world 
of  nature  is  not  merely  an  object  of  interest,  but  a  per- 
petual expression  of  the  one  life.  Those  strange  lines 
of  Blake 

The  caterpillar  on  the  leaf 
Reminds  me  of  my  mother  s  grief 

would  have  been  immediately  intelligible  to  every  cultivated 
reader  of  mediaeval  Chinese  and  Japanese  epigrams,  and 
would  have  inspired,  most  likely,  innumerable  paintings,  in 
which  the  caterpillar  should  be  so  represented  as  to  set 
forth  to  the  eye  and  still  more  to  the  heart  of  the  spectator 
the  essential  unity  of  all  existences.  This  is  the  '  Sermon 
of  the  Wild ' ;  and  to  be  sensitive  to  these  prophecies  and 
intimations  is  characteristic  alike  of  poetry  and  painting  in 
the  later  developments  of  the  Mahayana.  Thus  in  China 
as  in  India,  but  in  a  different  fashion,  thought  expressed  in 
art  developed  from  an  early  hieratic  formulation  to  a 
representation  of  the  pure  transparency  of  life. 

^  Binyon,  loc.  at. 


345 


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Beal,  S.  :   The  Romantic  History  of  Buddha.     London,  1875. 
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BiNYON,  L. :  Fainting  in  the  Far  East.    (2nd  ed.)     London,  191 3. 
Burgess,  J. :  Amardvat'i  and  Jaggayyapeta.     London,  1887. 
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1909. 
CoOMARASWAMY,  A. :  Arts  and  Crafts  of  India  and  Ceylon.     London, 

1913- 
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1914. 
Buddhist  Frimitives,  "Burlington  Magazine/'  Jan.,  March,  19 16. 
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the  Royal  Asiatic  Society."  1909. 
Media:val  Sinhalese  Art.     Campden,  1908. 
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Stupa  of  Bharhut.     London,  1879. 
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1900,  1905. 
L  Art  grcco-bouddhique  du  Gandhara.     Paris,  1905. 
La  Forte  Orientate  du  StUpa  de  Sdftchi.     Paris  1910. 
Le  '  Grand  Miracle '  du  Buddha  ct  Srdvasti,     "  Journal  Asiaticiue," 

1909. 
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Guiraet,  Bibliothcque  de  Vulgarisation,"  Tome  40,  Paris,  19 14. 

347 


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349 


GLOSSARY 

Where  a  word  is  given  in  two  forms,  the  first  is  PaH,  the  second, 
within  brackets,  is  Sanskrit.  Elsewhere  the  distinction  is  indicated  by 
the  letters  P  and  S.  The  Pali  and  Sanskrit  terms  are,  of  course,  cognate 
throughout. 

Ahamkara,  S  :  the  conceit  of  individuality,  empirical  egoism. 

Akhydna,  S  :  an  old  literary  form,  viz.  conte  fable. 

Alamkdra,  S  :  rhetoric,  poetic  ornament. 

Alaya-vijndna,  S  :  Cosmic  Mind  or  Reason,  realm  of  the  Platonic  Ideas. 

An-atid,  P  :  the  doctrine  that  there  are  no  egos,  or  souls. 

Anicca  (aniiya)  :  impermanence,  transcience. 

Antahkarana,  S  :  inner  actor,  the  inner  man,  the  'soul.' 

Apard  vidyd,  S  :  relative  truth,  esoteric  truth. 

Arahat,  P  :  one  who  has  attained  to  Arahatta. 

Arahatta,  P  :  the  state  of  saving  truth,  the  state  of  one  who  has  attained 

Nibbana,  or   walks   in   the   Fourth   Path   of  which   the  fruit   is 

Nibbana. 
Ariya  {dryd) :  noble,  gentle,  honourable, 
Ariyasaccdni  {dryasatydni) :  the   Four   Noble   Truths  emunciated   in 

Buddha's  first  sermon. 
ArFtpa-Iokas,  S :  the  Four  Highest  Heavens,  transcending  form. 
Asubha-Jhdna,  P  :  meditation  on  the  essential  uncleanness  of  things. 
Atman,S):  (i)   taken  by   Buddhists  in   the   sense   of  ego,   or  soul; 

(2)  in  Brahmanism,  the  Absolute,  unconditioned,  spirit,  Brahman; 

also  the  reflection  of  the  Absolute  in  the  individual. 
Atia  (artha) :  aim,  gain,  advantage,  profit. 
Attd  (diman),  P  :  self,  soul,  person,  ego  ;  a  permanent  unity  in  the  sense 

of  an  'eternal  soul,'  the  existence  of  which  is  denied  in  the  proposition 

'  an-atta.'     Attd  etymologically  =  atman,  but  does  not  connote  the 

unconditioned  Atman  of  the  Brahman  absolutists. 
Avidyd,  S  :  ignorance,  the  contraction  of  Suchness  into  variety.     The 

basis  of  Tan/id,  and  thus  of  the  whole  Samsdra. 

Ignorance  is  the  true  '  First  Cause '  of  Indian  philosophy  :  but  this 

'First  Cause'  is  'first'  only  as  'fundamental,'  not  as  temporal. 

Ignorance  can  be  overcome  by  the  individual  consciousness,  which 

is  then  '  set  free,"  vimutto. 
Bhakti,  S  :  loving  devotion. 

35^ 


Glossary 


Bhakti  mdrga,  S  :  the  way  of  love,  the  means  of  salvation  by  devotion. 

Bhavanga-gafi,  P,  S  :  the  ordinary  unconscious  life  of  the  body,  etc. 

Bhikkhu,  P  :  mendicant  friar,  '  Buddhist  priest.' 

Bkikkhu?n,  P  :  feminine  of  Bhikkhu. 

Bodhi,  P  :  wisdom,  Suchness,  intuition,  illumination,  inner  light.  Cf. 
Persian  ^Ishq. 

Bodhi-citta,  P  :  heart-of-wisdom,  inward  light,  grace,  '  shoot  of  ever- 
lastingnesse,'  the  divine  spark  of  the  Buddha-nature  in  the  heart. 

Bodhisatta  {Bodhisatlva) :  Wisdom-being,  (i)  Gautama  before  attain- 
ing enlightenment;  (2)  any  individual  self-dedicate  to  the 
salvation  of  others  and  destined  to  the  attainment  of  Buddha- 
hood. 

Brahma,  S  :  the  supreme  personal  god  so  called. 

Brahmdcdrya,  S  :  chaste  life,  especially  of  a  Brahmanical  student. 

Brahman,  S  :  a  man  of  the  Brdhmana  varna,  a  Brahman  by  birth,  a 
philosopher,  priest.  Ethically,  one  who  fulfils  the  ideal  of  a  true 
Brahman. 

Brahman,  Brahma,  S  :  the  Absolute,  the  Unconditioned,  which  is  '  Not 
so,  not  so,'  the  Ground,  the  Undivided  Self,  the  World  of 
Imagination. 

Buddha,  P,  S  :  Enlightened,  (i)  Siddhattha  Gautama,  after  attaining 
enlightenment ;  (2)  other  individuals  who  have  similarly  attained 
Nibbana ;  (3)  any  such  individual  considered  as  a  supreme  God, 
whose  attainment  of  Buddhahood  is  timeless. 

Buddhi,  P,  S :  enlightenment,  intelligence. 

Cakka  (cakra):  'wheel.'  Symbol  of  sovereignty,  hence  the  Wheel  of 
the  Good  Law,  of  the  Gospel. 

Cariya,  P  :  '  course,'  the  succession  of  lives  of  a  Bodhisattva. 

Cetand,  P  :  will. 

Citta,  P  :  heart,  Suchness. 

Deva,  P,  S  :  any  personal  god,  angel,  e.g.  Brahma,  Sakka. 

Dhamjna  (dharma) :  Norm,  gospel,  law,  righteousness,  morality, 
religion ;  condition. 

Dhamma-cakkhu,  S  :  Eye  for  the  truth. 

Dhar77iakdya,  S :  law  body.  Logos,  the  supreme  state  of  a  Buddha ; 
Absolute  Being,  the  Ground  ;  absolute  knowledge. 

Dibba-cakkhi,  P  :  heavenly  eye,  omniscient  vision  of  the  Universe  of 
Form  (Rupaloka  and  Kamaloka). 

Dosa,  P  :  hatred,  resentment,  revenge,  anger. 


Glossary 

Dukkha,  P  :  evil,  suffering,  sin,  imperfection.  One  of  the  Three  Signs 
of  Existence  and  one  of  the  Four  Ariyan  Truths. 

Hlnaydna :  the  '  Little  Vessel,'  a  term  applied  by  the  Mahilyanists  to 
the  doctrines  of  early  Buddhism.  The  Hinaydna  is  set  forth  in 
the  Pali  Thcravdda.  Sometimes,  but  not  accurately,  called 
Southern  Buddhism. 

Isvara,  S :  Overlord,  a  Supreme  Personal  God.     God  in  the  general 

Christian  sense. 
Jaina,  P,  S  :  a  follower  of  Mahavira,  the  Jina  or  Conqueror. 

Tdtaka,  P,  S  :  a  birth-story,  the  history  of  some  episode  in  the  former  life 
of  the  Buddha. 

Thdna  (dhydna)  :  meditation,  the  mental  exercise  so  called,  in  particular 
the  Four  Ecstasies. 

T'lva^Jivdtmart,  S  :  the  Supreme  Atman  as  particularized  in  the  individual. 
Jfidtia^  S  :  wisdom,  the  intellectual. 

ffidna  mdrga,  S  :  the  intellectual  way,  means  of  salvation  by  knowledge. 

Kdma,  P,  S  :  love,  lust. 

Kdtna-Ioka,  P,  S  :  the  Six  Heavens  of  the  Lesser  Gods,  and  the  Five 
Lower  \Vorlds. 

Kajnma  {karma)  :  deeds,  character,  causality. 

Karma  mdrga^  S  :  the  way  of  deeds,  the  means  of  salvation  by  dis- 
interested activity. 

Karund  {karma) :  compassion,  the  bestowing  virtue — the  leading  passion 
in  a  Bodhisattva. 

Khandha  (skafidha) :  '  aggregate,'  the  compound  factors  of  con- 
sciousness. 

Klesa,  S  :  sin,  prejudice. 

Llld^  S  :  '  play,'  the  *  wonderful  works  of  the  Lord,'  manifestation. 

Mddhyamika,  S, :  a  division  of  the  Mahayana,  mainly  dependent  on 
Nagarjuna. 

Magga  (mdrga) :  way,  path. 

Mahdydna,  S  :  the  '  Great  Vessel,'  the  doctrines  of  the  Mahayanists,  so- 
called  by  themselves.  The  Mahdydna  is  set  forth  in  the  Sanskrit 
Buddhist  texts.  Sometimes  referred  to,  but  not  accurately,  as 
Northern  Buddhism. 

Mdna,  P,  S  :  pride,  conceit,  any  intrusion  of i  the  ego. 

Manas,  P,  S  :  mind,  soul ;  ego. 

Mdyd,  S  :  illusion,  the  power  of  creation  or  manifestation. 

Mdtd  (maitri)  :  friendliness,  goodwill,  lovrng-kindness. 

z  353 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Mb/ia,  P :  infatuation,  delusion,  prejudice,  folly,  sentimentality. 

Muditd,  P  :  sympathy,  one  of  the  Four  Sublime  Moods. 

Mudra,  S  :  seal.     Position  of  the  fingers,  hieratic  gesture. 

JVd^a,  P,  S :  a  being  having  the  dual  character  of  man  and  serpent. 
Also  an  elephant,  a  wise  man. 

Ndginl,  P,  S  :  feminine  of  Nagt. 

Ndma-rupa^  P,  S  :  lit.  name  and  form,  which  alone  constitute  an  aggre- 
gate into  a  seeming  personality  or  unit.  Psychologically,  'an 
embodiment '  without  the  idea  of  anything  embodied  :  mind  and 
body,  or  mind  and  matter.     For  riipa  in  other  senses,  s.v. 

Nibbdna  (nirvdna) :  ethically,  the  dying  out  of  lust,  resentment,  and 
j  illusion  :  psychologically,  release  from  individuality.  The  Recog- 
nition of  Truth.  A  state  of  salvation  to  be  realized  here  and 
now ;  those  who  attain,  are  released  from  becoming,  and  after 
death  return  no  more.  Nibbdna  does  not  imply  the  '  annihilation 
of  the  soul,'  for  Buddhism  teaches  that  no  such  entity  as  a  soul  has 
ever  existed.  Nibbdna  is  one  of  many  names  for  the  summum 
bomim  ;  it  may  be  best  translated  as  Abyss,  Stillness,  Void,  or 
Nothing  (not-thing-ness). 

Nirguna,  S  :  unconditioned,  unqualified,  in  no  wise. 

Nirmdnakdya,  S  :  magical  body,  apparition,  body  of  transformation,  the 
earthly  aspect  of  a  Buddha. 

Nishkdma,  S  :  disinterested. 

Nivritti  mdrga,  S  :  the  Path  of  Return. 

Pacceka  Buddha,  P  :  one  who  attains  enlightenment,  but  does  not  teach ; 
a  '  private  Buddha.' 

Pafifia,  P  :  wisdom,  reason,  insight. 

Panfia-cakkhu,  P  :  Eye  of  insight  or  wisdom. 

Pard  vidyd,  S  :  absolute  truth,  esoteric  truth. 

Paramdrtha  satya,  S  :  absolute  truth. 

Pdramitd,  S :  transcendental  perfection,  especially  the  perfected  virtue 
of  a  Bodhisattva. 

Paribdjaka,  P  :  a  '  Wanderer,'  a  peripatetic  hermit. 

Parinibbdna  (parinirvdna)  :  'full  Nibbana,'  (i)  identical  with  Nibbdna, 
Arahatta,  Vimutii,  Afiild,  etc.,  (2)  death  of  a  human  being  who  has 
previously  realized  Nibbdna,  death  of  an  Arahat:  also  simply 
'  dissolution.' 

Paticca-samupdda,  P  :  dependent  origination,  causality. 

Prajnd,  S  :  reason,  understanding. 

354 


Glossary 

Frajfia-farami/d,  S  :  supreme  reason.     Also  personified  as  the  '  Mother 

of  the  Buddhas,'  Tathdgaia-^^arbha.     Cf.   Persian  'Aql.    Regarded 

as  the  way  out,  she  is  the  principle  of  analysis;  as  the  way  in,  the 

principle  of  synthesis. 
Prakriii,  S  :  Nature,  the  corporeal  world. 

Pranidhc'ifia,  S  :  vow,  self-dedication,  firm  persuasion,  of  a  Bodhisattva. 
Pravriiti  7?idrga,  S  :  the  Path  of  Pursuit. 
Pi/nna  (punya)  :  merit,  good  character. 
Pumsha,    S :  '  Male,'    a   personification    of   the    Brahman    or  Atman 

(Vedanta) :  an  individual  soul  (Samkhya).     Antithetic  to  Prakriti, 

'spirit'  as  opposed  to  'matter,' 
Pdga,  P,  S  :  lust,  passion,  desire. 
Pdkshasa,  S  :  a  man  devouring  demon. 
Rupa^  P,  S  :  form,  shape.     In  a  categorical  sense,  quality.     See  also 

Ndtnarupa. 
Rupa-lokas,  P,  S :   the   Sixteen    Heavens   conditioned   by  form,  next 

the  below  Arupa-lokas. 
Sagutia,  S  :  conditioned,  qualified. 
Samddhi,  P,  S  :  tranquillity,  self-concentration,  calm,  rapture.     A  state 

attained   in  Jhana,  and  then  equivalent  to  the    transcending  of 

empirical  consciousness :  also  the  state  of  calm  which  is  always 

characteristic  of  the  Arahrat. 
Samana,  P  :  wandering  friar.     The  Buddha  is  often  referred  to  as  '  The 

Great  Samana.' 
Sa?nl>hogakdya,  S  :  '  Enjoyment-body,'  the  heavenly  aspect  of  a  Buddha. 
Samkhya,  S  :  *  School  of  the  Count,'  a  prcrBuddhist  philosophy,  so-called 

as  '  reckoning-up '  the  twenty-five  categories. 
Samsdra,    V,   S :  Becoming,   conditioned    existence,   birth-and-death, 

eternal  recurrence,  mortality,  corporeal  existence,  the  vegetative 

world. 
Samvritti  satya,  S  :  relative  truth. 
Sangha,  P,  S :  the  Order,  the  company  or  congregation  of  monks  and 

nuns. 
{Sankhdra)  Samskdra :  '  conformation,'  impression  of  previous  deeds, 

constituents  of  character. 
Sanfia,  P  :  perception. 

Sarraguna,  S  :  in  all  wise,  having  all  possible  qualities. 
Sati,  P  :  rccollectedncss,  conscience. 
Sila,  P :  conduct,  morality. 

355 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 

Siljl :  a  Persian  mystic. 

Suk/ta,  P,  S  :  good,  pleasure,  happiness,  weal. 

Sukhavati:    the  Western  Paradise  of  Amitabha,  the  highest  heaven, 

the  '  Buddha  field  '  where  souls  are  ripened  for  Nirvana. 
Sutta   (sutra):    'thread.'     A   literary   form,    in   Buddhist   scriptures, 

words  of  the  Buddha  '  strung  together '  as  a  sermon  or  dialogue ; 

in  Hindu  scriptures,  a  connected  series  of  aphorisms. 
Svabhava,  S  :  '  own-nature.'  The  self-existent,  the  source  of  spontaneity ; 

a  term  analogous  to  '  I  am  that  I  am,'  applied  to  the  Supreme 

Buddha  (Adi-Buddha  of  the  later  Mahayana). 
Sva-dharma,  S  :   '  own  norm,'  peculiar  duty  of  the  individual  or  social 

group. 
Ta7ihd  (trishna) :  desire,  coveting,  craving,  an  eager  wish  to  obtain  or 

enjoy,  interested  motive.     In  this  sense   Buddhism   teaches  the 

extinction  of  desire  (in  Hinduism,  'renunciation  of  the  fruits  of 

works '),  but  Tajiha  does  not  cover  aspiration  or  good  intention, 

which  are  included  in  the  '  Right  Desire '  of  the  Eightfold  Path. 
Tao :  the   absolutist  philosophy  of  the  Chinese  philosopher  Laotse. 

The  term  Tao  has  a  connotation  similar  to  that  of  Nirvana  and 

Brahman. 
TaJ>as,  S :  burning,  glow,  toil,  torture. 

Tdra  :  the  feminine  counterpart  of  a  Bodhisattva,  a  saviouress. 
TatMgata,  S :  Thus-gone   or  Thus-come,   He-who-has-thus-attained,  a 

term  used  by  the  Buddha  in  speaking  of  himself. 
Tathdgata-garbha,  S:     'Womb-of-Those-who-have-thus-come.'     The 

Dharma-kdya,  or  Suchness,  as  viewed  from  the  standpoint  of  the 

relative  and  regarded  as  the  origin  of  all  things ;  mother  of  the 

Buddhas   and   all  sentient   beings;    Nature  as  potential  matter, 

Maya,  Prakriti ;  Prajnaparamita. 
Tattva,  bhutatathatd,  S  :  Suchness,  Ground,  Substrate,  the  inevitability 

and  universality  of  things,  the  source  of  spontaneity.     The  quality 

of  infinity  in  every  particular,  of  the  whole  in  the  part. 
Tdvathnsa-.  Heaven  of  the  Thirty-three  Gods,  one  of  the  Six  Lower 

Heavens. 
Thera,  P  :  an  elder  ;  amongst  the  Brethren,  an  Arahat. 
Theravdda,  P  :  '  word  of  the  elders.'     By  this  term  the  early  Buddhists 
distinguish   their   belief    from    that   of    the    Mahayanists.      The 
Theravdda  texts  constitute  the  Pali  canon. 
Theri^  P  :  feminine  of  Thera. 


Glossary 

Thupa  (stupa) :  a  memorial  mound,  generally  enshrining  relics. 

Tri-kaya,  S  :  the  Three  Bodies,  or  modes,  of  a  Buddha  (Mahayana),  viz. 
Dharinakaya,  Satnbhogakaya,  and  Nirmiinakaya,  q.v. 

Tri-ratna,  S,  the  'Three  Jewels.'  In  the  Hinayd?ia,  the  Buddha,  the 
Dhamma,  and  the  Sangha ;  in  the  Mahayana,  the  Buddhas,  the 
Sons  of  the  Buddhas,  and  the  Dharmakaya. 

Tusita,  S  :  Heaven  of  Pleasure,  one  of  the  Six  Lower  Heavens. 

Upadhi  {upadhi) :  attributes,  superimposed  by  the  mind  upon  the  un- 
conditioned :  individualizing  determinations. 

Upanis/iad,  S  :  books  of  the  later  Veda,  partly  pre-Buddbist,  where  are 
found  the  leading  texts  of  the  Vedanta  or  Brahmanical  absolutist 
philosophy  to  which  Buddhism  is  nominally  opposed. 

Updya,  P  :  means,  accommodation. 

Upekha,  P  :  impartiality,  same-sightedness,  one  of  the  Four  Sublime 
Moods. 

Vdnaprasiha,  S  :  a  forest-dwelling  hermit. 

Varna,  S  :  '  colour,'  complexion.  Combined  with  hereditary  occupation, 
and  the  recognition  of  special  social  forms,  '  colour '  becomes 
caste,  which  was  in  process  of  development  in  the  time  of 
Gautama. 

Vedand,  P :  feeling. 

Vinfidna  {vijfiana) :  consciousness,  mental  activity. 

Vhnutti,  Vimokha  (moksha)  :  salvation,  release,  the  summum  bonuni, 

Vimuito  :  saved,  released. 

Vtnaya,  P  :  Rules  of  the  Buddhist  Order. 

\akkha  {yaksha) :  a  nature  spirit. 

Yogdcara,  S  :  a  division  of  the  Mahayana,  mainly  dependent  on  Asanga. 


357 


INDEX 


A  Kempis,  Thomas,  320 

Abhidhamma  Pitaka,  36,  295,  296 

Achelas,  152 

Adibuddha,  239,  249 

Afghanistan,  185 

Ahamkdra,  195 

Ajanta.  311,  333,  335,  2>l6,  337,  339 

A  junta  Frescoes,  340 

Ajatasattu,  64,  68,  71,  72,  89,  266 

Ajivikas,  152,  156,  158,  186 

Akshobya,  249 

Al-Hujwlri,  244 

Alakappa,  89 

Alanrikara,  309 

Alara  Kalama,  28,  29,  38,  79,  80, 

198.  199 
Alavi,  59 

Alaya-vijiiana,  252,  310 
Amaravati,  224,  327-329 
Amida,  247 
Amidism,  247 

Amitabha,  247-249,  253,  317 
Ampabali,  74,  75,  164,  285 
Ampabali's  '  Psalm,'  74 
Amoghasiddha,  249 
Ananda,  14,  18,  50,  54,  55,  67-69, 

72,    76-87.   98,    104,    108.    124, 
_i5o,  160-162,  269 
Ananda,  104 
Ananda,  Psalm  of,  108 
AnSthapindika,  51,  5a,  60,  62,  263, 

271 
Anatta.  91,  98,  105,  140,  173,  174, 

188,  198,  199,  205,  217,  219,  287, 

296 
Ancient  Mariner,  The,  313 
Anpa,  60 
Angulimala,  60 
Anguttara  Nikdya,   100,   119,   158, 

212,  265,  272 


Anicca,  91,  93-98,  105,  173,  175 

Ankoin,  340 

Anoma,  25 

Anotatta  lake,  1 3 

Antahkarana,  189,  195 

Anula,  Princess,  185 

Anupiya,  27,  50 

Anuradhapura,  133,  134,  185,  297, 

299,  328 
Anuruddha,    50,    58,    60,    87,    99, 

117,  151 
Apaddna,  265 
Arahat,  12,  15,  31,  39,  41,  72,  jz, 

85,  87,  102,   103,  116-118,  120- 

122,  140,  178,  212,  227-230 
Arahatta,  42,  43,  45,  48,   53,   55, 

56,  60,  68,  St,,  86,  116-118,  123, 

151,  153,  161,  165,  205,  223,  229 
Ariyas,  165,  168 
Ariyasaccdni,     see     Four    Ariyan 

Truths 
Arnold,  Sir  Edwin,  11,  302 
Art,  140 

Art  of  the  Theatre,  The,  177 
A  riipa  Jhdnas,  1 1 1 
ArUpa-loka,  in,  147 
ArUparaga,  103 
Aryadeva,  319 
Aryasura,  310-316 
Asanga,  251,  252,  310,  320 
Ashtasahasrika  -  prajndpdramitd, 

316 
Asadha,  25 
Asia,  184 
Asoka    Maurya,     154,    156,     157, 

182-186,    216,    220,    222,    260, 

262,  298.  299,  314,  325 
Asoka,   Edicts  of,    130,    138,    153, 

156,  158,  259,  261,  262,  274 
Assaji,  44,  45 
Asvaghosha,    146,    243,    245,    270, 

303-310,  316,  319 

359 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 


Asuhha-hhavana,  144,  171 
Atman,  the,  28,  29,  187-189,  192, 

194,    198-203,    205,    206,    209, 

215,  217-219 
Aita,  199 
Atuma,  80 
Aung,  S.  Z.,  99,  140 
Avadanas,  309,  314 
Avalokitesvara,  247-249,  253,  317, 

32>^,  3Z^>  342 
Avatamsaka  Sutra,  229,  246 
Avidya,  210 
Avijjd,  97,  103 
Avijjd  dsava,  103 
Avydkala  Samyutta,  223 
Awakening  of  Faith,  The,  245 


B 


Balajalonakara,  58 
Balfour,  G.  W.,  108 
Bambu-grove  Monastery,  44,  62, 

68  ;   see  also  Veluvana 
Barnett,  L.  D.,  236 
Beal,  156,  181 
Becoming,  Law  of,  no,  117,  120, 

208,  209,  211,  222,  226 
Behnaen,  120,  125,  146,  226,  241, 

246,  248,  317 
Bell,  Clive,  140,  330 
Beluva,  75 
Benares,    30,    38,    46,     186,    263, 

333 
Bengal,  335,  336 

Beyond  Good  and  Evil,  174 

Bhaddiva,  50 

Bhadda,  163 

Bhagavad  Gttd,  104,  105,  143,  149, 

204,  212,  218,  224,  251,  323,  327 

Bhakta-kalpadruma,  157 

Bhakti  Yoga,  212 

Bharadvaja,  59 

Bharhut,  62,  325,  333 

Bhava,  97 

360 


Bhava  dsava,  103 

B hi kkuni samyutta,  270 

Bhikkhus,  69,  152,  154,  155,  331 

Bihar,  62 

Bimbisara,  27,  43,  56,  57,  62,  68, 

265 
Binyon,  341,  343 
Black  Snake   King,   whirlpool  of 

the,  32 
Blake,  Wm.,  235,  245,  255,  345 
Bodhi,  239 

Bodhicarydvatara,  236,  320 
Bodhi-citta,  141 
Bodhidharma,  253 
Bodhisatta     (Bodhisattva),     225, 

227,  229-231,  233-235,  237 
Bodhi  tree,  14,  180,  185 
Bohd  Gaya,  297 
Borobodur,  302,  326,  336 
Bo-tree,  185 
Brahma,  29,  58,  93,  112,  114,  151, 

199,  205,  237,  241 
Brahma-lokas,  in 
Brahman,   28,   29,    187,    187-194, 

199-202,  209,  210,  252,  254 
Brahman,  89,  199,  214,  278 
Brahmanism,  112,  198-221 
Brahma  Sittra,  209 
'  Brazen  Palace  '  monastery,  300 
Brihaddranyaka    Upanishad,    160, 

187,    188,    190,    200,    201,    203, 

209,  210,  213,  216,  218 
Buddha,  60,  90,  212 
Buddha-carita,  146,  303,  304,  309 
Buddhaghosha,  86,  100,  loi,  106, 

152,  204,  274,  297,  298 
Buddhavamsa,  265,  295 
Buddhism,  198-221 
Buddhism,  199,  204,  237 
Buddhism  in  Translations,  43,  163, 

172 
Buddhist    China,    158,    237,    254, 

25s.  342 
Buddhist  Psychology,  113,  203 
Buddhist  Review,  140 


Index 


Bulis,  89 

Burma,    129,    153,    154.   222,   297, 
298,  333.  336 


Cambodia,  s33.  33^ 

Cambridge  Magazine,  182 

Canda-kinnara  Jatdka,  49 

Candana,  284 

Cande  Uda,  134 

Canudo,  Riciotto,  324 

Capala,  yy 

Cariydpitaka,  265,  295 

Cetand,  97,  100 

Ceylon,   133,   134,    153,    154,    184, 

185,    222,    259,    261,    297,    298, 

3or,  335 
Chaddanta,  290-293,  334 
Chaddanta  Jdtaka,  289-293,  334 
Ch'an,  252-258 
Chdndogya    Upanishad,    117,    idij , 

200,  201,  209 
Channa,  14,  19,  24-27,  326 
Chidambara  Swami,  241 
China,    166,    222,    253,    254,    ^t,i, 

338,  341-343.  345 
Christianity,    Docetic    heresy    of, 

123 
Chuang  Tzu,  7,3-  38,  178,  267 
Cinca,  58 
Citta  Gutta,  170 
Cologne,  342 

Commandments,  Ten,  130,  153 
Commentary     on     the     Bhdgavata 

Pttrdna,  230 
Compendium  of  Philosophy,  99,  1 1 7 
Concepts  of  Monism,  199 
Confucius,  159 
Constantine,  185 
Contemplation  upon  Flowers,  257 
Convenient    means,    Doctrine   of, 

159,  250-252 
Craig,  Gordon,  177 


Cromwell,  Oliver,  130,  185 
CuUasubhadda,  290,  291 
Cullavagga,  90,  262,  263 
Cunda,  78-81 
Cyrene,  184 


Dasa  Dhammika  Sutta,  324 
Davids,  C.  A.  F.  Rhys,   loi,   113, 

119,    120,    127,    138,    149,    165, 

167,    170,    199,    203-205,    227, 

284.  287 
Davids,  T.  W.  Rhys,  40,  yj,  96, 

100,    109,    114,    152,    167,    199- 

201,  204,  205,  227,  237,  276,  287 
Dependent  Origination,  Law  of,  96 
Deussen,  179,  201,  204 
Devadaha,  14 
Devadatta,  18,  32,  51,  68-71,  126, 

152,  180,  263 
Devi,  240,  241 
Dhamma,   90,  94,   no,    127,    130, 

158,  179,  181-184,  206,  223,  224 
Dhamma-cakkhu,  267 
Dhammadinna,  163 
Dhammapada,  92,    122,    126,    178, 

182,  265,  279,  281 
Dhammapdla  Jataka,  48 
Dhamma-Sanganl,  148 
Dharana,  196 

Dharmakdya,  159,  237-240,  246 
Dharmaraja,  308 
Dhibba-cakkhu,  267 
Dhydna,  196 
Dialogues  of  the  Buddha,  114,  152, 

199,  204,  205,  227,  276 
Digha  Nikaya,  265,  270 
Dipankara  Buddha,  12 
Dtpavamsa,  298,  299 
Ditthi,  103 

Divydvaddna,  314,  ^^y 
Docetic  heresy,  123,  250 
Dona,  89 

361 


Buddha  &f  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 


Dukkha,  90-92,  96,  105,  120,  177, 

178,  182,  211,  287 
Duns  Scotus,  240 
Dutthagamani,  150,  299 
Dying  Out,  122,  181 


Early  Buddhism,  40,  109,  200,  201 

Egypt,  184 

Eight    Stations    of    Deliverance, 

118,  124 
Eightfold   Path,   the  Ariyan,    10, 

37.  39.  40,  84,  85,  91,  263 
Elara,  299,  300 
Elephanta,  336 
Ellora,  336 
Emerson,  R.  W.,  121 
Epirus,  184 
Eternal  Life,  1 1 5 
'  Eternity,  Religion  of,'  128 
Ethics,  126-137 
Euphrates,  260 
Evening    Chime    of    the    Distant 

Temple,  343 

M  F 

'  $ 

Fa  Hien,  1 86 

Fana,  115,  119 

Fand-al-fand,  119 

Faust,  III 

Feltham,  141 

First  Cause,  1 10 

First  Path,  the,  40,  44,  45,  48,  55, 

56,  70,  loi,  102,  149,  293 
Five  Aggregates,  99,  loi 
Five  Wanderers  [or  Disciples),  30, 

38,  39-  41 
Forty  Questions,  The,  246 
Foucher,  M.,  328 
Foul  Things,  Meditation  on,  144, 

172,  234 

362 


Four  Arupa  Jhcinas,  112,  118 
Four    Ariyan    Truths,     or    Four 

Noble  Truths,   10,  44,  90,   10 1, 

102,  177,  263 
Four  Cardinal  Sins,  153 
Four  Floods,  103 
Four  Great  Kings,  22,  37,  in 
Four  Guardians  of  the  Quarters,  1 3, 

22  ;  see  also  Four  Great  Kings 
Four  Jhanas,  112,  114 
Four  Meditations,  144 
Four  Paths,  10 1 
Four  Signs,  16,  19 
Four   Sublime   Moods,    114,    142, 

143,  145,  268 
Four  Varnas,  217 
Fourth  Path,  the,  53,  55,  102,  103 
Francis  of  Assisi,  1 59 
'  Free-in-both-ways,'  124 
Freer,  C.  L.,  342 


Gamani,  299 

Gandhara,  329,  330,  333,  335,  338 

Gargi,  213 

Gaudapada,  192 

Gautama,  249 

Gautami,  the  Matron,  16,  22,  49, 

53-55 
Gay  a  Scarp,  42,  70 
Geiger,  Professor,  299 
GhositSrama,  58 
Goethe,  1 1 1 
Goloubew,  M,,  342 
Gopika,  164 
Gotamakas,  152 
Gotami,    the    Slender,    148,    251, 

270  ;   see  also  Kisa  Gotami 
Great  Renunciation,  19,  24,  216 
'  Great  Thupa,'  300 
Greece,  341 

Grove  of  Gladness,  the,  13 
Gupta  period,  332,  z^d 


Ind 


ex 


H 


Haeckel,  220 

Hall,  Fielding,  153,  154 

Hanuman,  201 

Havell,  337 

Hearn,   Lafcadio,    108,    137,   249, 

317 
Heaven  of  Delight,  1 3 

Heaven  of  Ideal  Form,  147 

Heaven  of  No-form,  147 

Heavens,  Brahma,  145,  147 

Heavens,  Buddhist,  110-115,  118, 

147 
Hermite,  113 
Hibhert  Journal,  108 
Himalayas,  13,  290,  291 
Hinayana    Buddhism,    151,    185, 

222,    226-228,    232,    236,    237, 

259.  316,  318,  324 
Hinduism,  175,  226 
Hiouen  Tsang,  1 56 
Hiranyavati,  R.,  81 
Hitopadesa,  281 
Hoey,  W.,  60 
Homer,  308 
Honan,  339,  341 
Horiuji,  340 
Hiien  Sha,  255 


'  Islam,'  140 

Isvara,  196,  197,  238,  247 
Itivuitaka,  265,  281 
I-tsing,  303,  310 


Imitation  of  Christ,  320 

India,    157,    174,    184,    185,    259, 

339.  345 
Indian    Sculpture    and    Painting, 

337 
Indra,  112,  201 
Indra,  heaven  of,  25 
Indriyas,  189 
Intoxications,  the,  74 
Isa  Upanishad,  209 
Isipatana,  30,  38 


Jainas,  the,  II,  52,  57,  156,  236 

Jail.  295 

Jambu-tree,  miracle  of  the,  16,  29, 

30,  47 
Jamuna,  R.,  309 
Janaka,  198,  212 
Janapada  Kalyani,  49 
Japan,    135-137,    166,    253,    333, 

341.  343 
Japan,  12>7 

Japan  Daily  Mail,  134 
Jardmaranam,  97 
Jdtaka,  265 

Jdtakamdld,  126,  131,  310 
Jatakas,  the,    159,   225,   287-289, 

314.  337 
Jdtakavannana,  287 
Jdti,  97 

Java,  333,  z^e,  Z37 
Jayadeva,  283 
Jesus,  115,  126,  138,  159,  181,  215, 

238,  251,  274  ;   also  Christ,  214, 

243,  250,  253,  332 
Jetavana  Grove  or  Monastery,  51, 

58.  59.  63,  70 
Jhanas,  the,  112,  114,  146,  147 
Jivaka,  64,  71 
J  hand  Mdrga,  211 
Jhdnd  Yoga,  212 
Johnston,   R.  F.,    158,   237,   254, 

255.  342 


K 

Kabir,  113,  245,  254 
Kaivalya  Upanishad,  190 


363 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 


Kakusandha,  249 

Kakuttha,  R.,  80 

Kala  Devala,  15,  29,  47 

Kali,  241 

Kalidasa,  283,  303 

Kalika,  241 

Kalinga,  182,  183,  294 

Kaludayi,  14 

Kaludayin,  46 

Kama,  103 

Kama  dsava,  103 

Kdma-lokas,  iii,  267 

Kdmd-vacdra  deva-lokas ,  iii 

Kamma,  107,  108,  122 

Kandula,  299 

Kanhajina,  295 

Kanishka,  328 

Kanthaka,  14,  24-27,  326 

Kapila,  194 

Kapilavatthu,  9,   13,   14,    17,    19, 

22,   26,   29.   32,  46,  47,   50,   53, 

59,  72,  89,  126,  180,  194 
Karandavyuha,  317 
Karma,  see  Kamma 
Karma  Yoga,  212 
Karund,  142,  143 
Kashf  al-Mahjub,  244 
Kassapa,  42-44,  88,  105,  249,  269, 

270 
Kassapa-gotta,  298 
Kathaka  Upanishad,  203 
Kausambi,  58,  59 
Keats,  John,  113 
Khaggavisdna  Sutta,  171 
Khandaka,  262 
Khandhas,  100 
Khema,  56,  163,  223 
Khuddaka  Nikdya,  265,  275,  279, 

282,  295 
Khuddakapatha,  158,  265 
Kimbila,  50,  58 
King,  Henry,  257 
Kinso,  256 
Kisa  Gotami,  23,   163,  271,  272  ; 

see  also  Gotami  the  Slender 


Knox,  134 

Koliyas,  52,  89 

Konagammana,  249 

Kondaniia,  15,  16,  29,  38,  40 

Korea,  339 

Kosala,  52,  62,  71,  163,  223,  259 

Kosalas,  9,  72 

Krishna,  236 

Krishna  Lila,  236 

Krishna,  Sri,  149 

Kshattriyas,  199,  214,  217,  278 

Kuldvaka  Jdtaka,  162 

Kumarajiva,  319 

Kunala,  314,  315 

Kuroda,  S.,  233 

Kurral,  254 

Kusinara,  79,  84,  87-89 

Kutagara  Hall,  52,  54,  78 

Kwannon,  see  Kwanyin 

Kwanyin  (Kwannon),  249,  342 

Kyoto,  342 


364 


Lalitavistara,    11,    302,    303,    316, 

337 
Lanka,  300 
Laos,  336 
Laotze,  159 

Licchavis,  74,  75,  89,  164 
Light  of  Asia,  The,  11,  302 
Linga-sartra,  109 
Lokottaravadins,  302 
Longmen,  339,  341 
L'Origine   grecque   de   I'Image   du 

Bouddha,  328 
Loyang,  254,  341 


M 

Macedonia,  184 

Maddi,  294 

Mddhyamika  sHiras,  243,  319 


Index 


Mddhyamika  Sastra,  245 
Madhyamikas,  252,  319 
Magadha,  27,  44,  62,  64,  68,  182, 

217,  266,  336 
MagadhI,  259 
Magadhi  canon,  302 
Magdalene,  the,  74 
Magga,  90 
Magha,  162 
Maha  Brahma,  32,  38 
Maha   Maya,   9,    13,    14,    16,    57, 

241 
Maha    Ndrada    Kassapa    Jdtaka, 

44 
Maha  Niddna  Sutta,  118,  124 
Mahd  Parinibhdna  Suita,  11,  118, 

269,  277 
Mahd  Saithipatthdna  Sutta,  277 
Mahdbhdrata,  281,  310 
MahajapatI,  9 
Mahanama,  299 
Mahdpaddna  Sutta,  225,  278 
Mahasubhaddha,  290,  291 
Mahasudarsa,  305 
Mahdvagga,  43,  156,  262,  263 
Mahdvamsa,    150,    262,    298,    299, 

301.  304 
Mahdvastu,  302 
Mahayana,  10,  125,  159,  175,  215, 

220,    222-241,    244,    245,    247- 

249,     251-253,     259,     301-303, 

310,  316,  319,  345 
Mahdydna-sraddha-utpada,  310 
Mahavira,  152,  156,  217,  236 
Mahendra,  185 
Mahesvara,  241 
Maitreya,  336 
Majjhima,  298 
Majjhima  Nikdya.  91,  94,  96,  121, 

166,  224,  265,  270 
Malagiri,  69,  70 
Mallas,  81,  84,  87-89 
Mallians,  80 

Malunkyaputta,  120,  121 
Mamallapuram,  336 


Manas,  189 

Mdnava  Dharma-sdstra,  214 

Mangala  Sutta,  279 

Manjusri,  249,  331,  ZZ7.  34 ^ 

Mdno,  103 

Manu,  216,  218,  310 

Mara,  daughters  of,  34-36 

Mara   the   Fiend,    25,    32-35,    93, 

270-272 
Mdrasamyutta,  270 
Mdrkandcya  Purdna,  218 
Matsunaga  Teitoku,  256,  257 
Mathura,  333 
Maya,  see  Maha  Maya 
Mdyd,  Doctrine  of,  208-210 
Mean,  Doctrine  of,  94,  209,  210 
Meru,  Mount,  21 
Metta,  142,  143 
Metta  Sutta,  102 
Metteya,  112,  225,  249 
Migara,  mother  of,  52 
'  Middle  Path  of  Eight  Noes,'  242 
Miiinda  Panha,  116,  225,  296 
Millet,  Jean  Francois,  344 
Mogallana,  43-45.  57.  67,  70,  84 
Mohammad,  157,  159 
Moksha,  1 1 5 
Moore,  G.  E.,  140 
Moriyas,  89 
Morris,  Wm.,  267 
Mucalinda,  ly ,  325 
Muditd,  142,  143,  173 
Munsterberg,  Prof.  O.,  2,22) 
Music  as  a  Religion  of  the  Future, 

324 


N 


Nagarjuna,  242,   243-245,    250- 

252. 319. 340 

Nagasena,  296,  297 
Nagita,  Brother,  158 
Nairanjana,  29 


365 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 


Nalaka,  15 
Nalanda,  ;^2 
Nama-rupa,  97,  99,  100 
Nanda,  54 
Nandabala,  309 
Nandiya,  58 
Nara,  340 
Nausicaa,  308 
Nepal,  222,  335,  336 
Nibbdna,    12,   23,   36,   Z7>  4i,   43- 
53.  73.  85,   103,   no,   113,   115- 
125,    127,    140,    145,    147,    180, 
208,  222,  223 
Niddnakathd,  1 1 
Niddesa,  265 
Nietzsche,    77,   92,   93,    144,    174, 

176,  177,  179,  221,  229,  261 
Nigantha  Nataputta,  57,  84 
Niganthas,  152,  156 
Nigrodha-tree,  31 
Nikayas,  199 
Nimmana-vati,  in 
Nirmdnakaya,  238,  246,  249,  2  50 
Nirodha,  90 

Nirvana,   39,    125,   161,   209,   210, 
239,    241,    244,    248,    321  ;    see 
also  Nibbdna 
Nirvana  T antra,  241 
No-form,  heaven  of,  15,  147 
Norm,  the  Buddhist,  ^7,  71,  94, 
127,  269 


O 


Okakura,  340 

Oldenberg,  60,  90,  127,  160,  163, 
211,  264,  273,  276,  279,  314 

Orissa,  37,  182 

Oudh,  9 

Outlines  of  Mahdydna  Buddhism, 
159 

Outlines  of  the  Mahdydna  Philo- 
sophy, 233 

366 


Pacceka-Buddhas,  230 

Pacittiya,  262 

Padmapani,  249 

Painting  in  the  Far  East,  341 

Pali  canon,  the,  10,  158,  262-289, 
302 

Pali,  222,  223,  259,  261 

Pali  Jatakas,  1 1 ,  260 

Pali  Suttas,  ^2>Z 

Para,  78 

Parajika,  262 

Paramdrtha,  246,  252 

Pardmitds,  289 

Paranimitta-vasavatti ,  in 

Par  at  antra  satya,  252 

Paribbdfakas,    151,    152  ;    see  also 
Wanderers 

Parikalpita  satya,  252 

Parileyyaka,  58 

Parinibbana,  122 
Parispanna  satya,  252 

Parivara,  262 

Parthia,  338 
Parvati,  241 
Pasenadi,  223 
Patacara,  149,  163 
Pataliputra,  186 
Paticca-samupdda,  96 
Patigha,  103 
Patisambhiddmagga,  265 
Patna,  186 
Pava,  88 

Pdyasi  Sutta,  105,  in 
Perfect  Enlightenment,  35,  122 
Petavatthu,  265 
Petrucci,  R.,  257 

Philosophical    Letters    upon    Dog- 
matism and  Criticism,  197 
Philosophie    de    la    Nature    dans 
I' Art  d' Extreme  Orient,  La,  257 
Philosophy  of  the  Upanishads,  The, 
179,  204 


Index 


Phusati,  294 
Pindola-Bharadvaja,  56 
Pippalivana,  89 
Pitakas,  204,  262 
Planes  of  Desire,  in,  112 
Planes  of  Form,  in,  112 
Planes  of  No-form,  in,  112,  113 
Planes  of  Sensuous  Desire,  1 1 1 
Plato,  260 
Poincarc,  M.,  113 
Potthapada,  152 
Prajiia,  239,  240 

Prajilaparamita,  239,  240,  249.  337 
Prajndpuramiids,  242,  318 
Prakriti,  194,  240,  241 
Pranidhana,  321 
Prasenajit,  57 
Pratapa  Simha,  157 
Principia  Ethica,  140 
Psalms  of  the  Brethren,   119,   120, 

158,    167,    168,    172,    176,    228, 

283,  284 
Psalms  of  the  Sisters,  119,  138,  149, 

165,  176,  283,  284 
Pubbarama,  52 
Pukkusa,  79,  80 
Punna,  31 

Punnavaddhana,  52 
Puranas,  218 
Purusha,  194-196,  231 
Puto,  255 


Q 


Queen  Mallika's  Park,  152 
Questions  of  King  Milinda,   296, 
297 


'  Raft,  the  Great,'  222,  226 
•  Raft,  the  Little,'  222 
Raga,  34 


Rahula,    9,    14,    22,    24,    50,    54, 

263 
Rahula,  the  mother  of,  see  Yasod- 

har5, 
Rajagaha,  27,  29,  43-46,  50,   51, 

56,  59,  62,  64,  7i 
Rajgir,  62 

Rakkhita,  Grove,  58 
Rama,  167,  216 
Ramagama,  89 
Rdmdniija,  187,  206,  209 
Rdmdyana,  167,  289 
Rapti,  R.,  9,  62 
Rapture,  stages  of,  86 
Ratana  Sutta,  103 
Rati,  34 
Ratnapani,  249 
Ratnasambhava,  249 
Resolves,  141 
Revata,  297 
Rig  Veda,  209,  283 
Rohini,  R.,  52 

Romantic  History  of  Buddha,  181 
Rothenstein,  W.,  340 
Ricpa-loka,  in,  147,  267 
RUpardga,  103 
Ruru-deer,  311-313 
Ruysbroeck,  235 


Sadayatana,  97 
Saddharmapundarika,     159,     231, 

316 
Sagund,  252 
Sahet  Maheth,  62 
Saivas,  251 
Sakka,  22,  32,  2,7 >  57.  58,  m,   112, 

151,  162,  164,  237,  295 
Sakkdya-ditthi,  103 
Sakti,  240,  241 
Sakyamuni,  316 
Sakyas,  9,   17,   18,  22,  32,  46,  47, 

SO,  52,  72,  89,  180,  181 

367 


Buddha  &^  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 


Sakyasinha,  236 
Samadhi,  147,  148,  196,  330 
Samddhikdya,  239 
Samahha-phala  Sutta,  218,  277 
Samantabhadra,  249,  341 
Sambhogakdya,  238,  246,  249,  252 
Samkhya  system,   119,   187,   194- 

196,  231,  232 
Samsara,  93,   106,    148,    196,  209, 

244,  254 
Samudaya,  90 
Samvritti,  246,  252 
Samyutta   Nikdya,    98,    118,    119, 

148,  208,  265,  270,  277 
Sanchi,  224,  325,  326,  ^^2'  337 
Sangha,   127,    141,    151,    158,   224, 

283 
Sanghamitta,  185 
Sanjaya,  57,  84 

Sankara,  104,  201,  206,  207,  211 
Sankaracarya,  187,  243 
Sankhdra,  gj,  99,  100 
Sankissa,  58 
Sahhd,  99,  100 
Sanskrit,  259,  301-303,  310 
Sariputta,  44,  45,  50,   57,  67,  70, 

84,  119,  227 
Sarnath,  186 

Saundardnanda  Kdvya,  309 
Savatthi,   51,   52,   56-60,  62,   163, 

271,  290 
Schelling,  113,  197 
Schopenhauer,  157,  165 
Sea  of  Existence,  12 
Second  Path,  48,  55,  102 
'  Sermon  of  the  Inanimate,'  255 
Service    Tenures    Commission   Re- 
port, 154 
Seven  Connatal  Ones,  14 
Sex  and  Character,  166 
Shanti  Deva,  140,  236,  320-323 
Shao  Lin  monastery,  254 
Shikshasamuccaya,  140,  320 
Siam,  297,  ZZ^ 
Sigdlavddd  Sutta,  131,  269 

368 


Siha,  156 

Silahbata  pdramdsa,  103 

Silver  Hill,  13 

Sinha,  P.  N.,  230 

Sinhalese,  185 

Siva,  247,  251,  267 

Sivaka,  283 

Sivi,  294 

Six  Perfections,  242,  318 

Smith,  Vincent,  130 

Socrates,  159,  172 

Sonuttara,  292 

Sophocles,  332 

Soul  of  a  People,  The,  154 

Spassa,  97 

Speyer,  310 

Sravakas,  230 

Stupa  of  Bharhut,  the,  62 

Subhadda,  84,  85 

Subhadda  (wife  of  K.  of  Benaresl, 

292 
Subhuti,  242,  317,  318 
Suddhodana,  9,  10,  13,  17,  18,  20, 

29,  32,  45,  49,  50,   53,  54,   116. 

212 
Sijdra,  214,  218,  278 
Sufi,  115,  119,  140 
Sujata,  30,  31,  36,  Z7 
Sukha,  178 
Sukhavati,  247 
Sukhdvativyuha,  317 
Sumedha,  11,  12,  225,  288 
Sundari-Nanda,  287 
Sunya,  239 
Sunyata,  318 

Supersensual  Life,  The,  246 
Suprabuddha,  17,  18,  59 
Sutra,  64 
Sutrdlamkdya,  309 
Sutta-nipdta,  121,  265,  282 
Suttavibhanga,  262 
Sutta  Pitaka,  265 
Suttas,  the,  iii,  273 
Suzuki,  T.,  159,  24s 
Svabhdvakdya,  239 


Index 


Svetasvatara  U panishad,  208 

Syria,  184 

System  of  the  Veddnta,  201 


Tagore,  120 

Taittinya  U panishad,  200 
Tamils.  185 
T'ang  epoch,  341-343 
Tanha,  34 
Tanhd,  97,  100,  120 
T antra  Tattva,  241 
Tao,  1 1 5 

Tathagata,  39,  yj,  78,  82-84,  86, 
94,  159,  161,  162,  242,  250,  275, 

317.  318 

Tathdgata-garbha,  239,  240,  310 

Tatong,  338,  342 

Tattva,  239 

Tauler,  322 

Tdvatimsa,  1 1 1 

Tayamanavar,  241 

Ten  Commandments  or  Prohibi- 
tions, 130,  153 

Ten  Fetters,  103 

Ten  Perfections,  The,  12,  33 

Teu  Tse,  255 

Tevijja  Sutta,  113,  131,  205,  268 

Theragdthd,  265 

Theraputtabhaya,  300,  301 

Thcrd-thcrt-gdthd,  119,  283,  284 

Theravada  Dhamma,  175,  221,  259 

Thcrigdthd,  265 

Third  Path,  the,  48,  50,  55,  102 

Thirty-three  Devas,  22 

Thirty-three  Gods,  heaven  of  the, 
15,  16,  27,  57.  Ill 

Three  Moods,  103 

Three  Gems  or  Three  Jewels,  71, 
224 

Three  Pitakas.  262 

Three  Refuges,  257;  sec  also 
Three  Gems 


Ti-tsang,  249 
Tofukuji,  342 
Torio,  Viscount,  134 
Tree  of  Wisdom,  the,  32,  35,  36 
Trikaya,  238 
Tiisita,  1 1 1 

Twelve  Nidanas,  96  ;    see   Wheel 
of  Causation 


U 


Uddna,  223,  265,  281 

Uddaka,  38 

Uddhacca,  103 

Uma,  241 

Updddna,  97 

Upddhis,  189 

Upanishads,     100,    117,    187-190, 

193.     194.     199.    202,    204-207, 

209,  218,  243,  259 
Upekkha,  142,  143 
Uppalavanna,  163 
Uruvela,  29,  30,  42,  46 
Ushnlsha,  331 


Vaidehi  princes,  64 

Vairocana,  239,  249 

Vaisali,  155 

Vaishya,  214,  278 

Vajjians,  72 

Vajracchedika     Sutra,     242,     317, 

318 
Vajrapani,  249 
Vajrasuci,  310 

Valeur  de  la  Science,  La,  113 
Valmiki,  216 
Vanaprasthas,  151 
Vardhamana,  1 1 ,  57 
Vasetta,  i  \j\,  268,  269 
Vasettha  Sutta,  282 

2  A  369 


Buddha  &'  the  Gospel  of  Buddhism 


Vasubandhu,  251 

Vatsya,  158 

Vattagamani,  261 

Vedand,  97,  99,  100 

Vedanta  Sutras,  187 

Vedanta,  45,   109,   122,   180,   187- 

194,    196,    200,    202,    203,    209, 

238,  241,  322 
Vedas,  187,  191,  218,  226,  310 
Veluvana,  62,  63 
Vesali,  52,  54,  72.  74,  75,  89 
Vessantara,    Prince,    12,    34,    47, 

294,  295 
Vessantara  Jdtaka,  230,  289,  294, 

295 
Vethadipa,  89 
Vibhanga,  94 
Vicikicchd,  103 
Vijaya,  Sister,  172 
Vijfiana  Bhikshu,  219 
Vijnanavadins,  252 
Vimokhd,  iiy 
Vimala-knti  Sutra,  244 
Vimdnavatthu,  265 
Vimutii,  117,  118,  122-124,  148 
Vinaya  Pitaka,  262,  265 
Vinndna,  96,  97,  99,  100 
Vipassi,  278 
Visakha,  52,  163,  164 
Vishnu,  241,  247 
Vissakamma,  57 
Visuddhi  Magga,  92,  95,  159,  170, 

172,  297,  324 
Visvapani,  249 
Vulture's  Peak,  jt, 
Vyasa,  216 


W 

Wanderers,  The,  151,  152 

Wang  Wei,  343 

Warren,  163,  172 

Way  of  Enlightenment,  320 

Wei  period,  342 

Weininger,  165,  166 

Wheel  of  Causation,  96 

Wheel   of  the    Law,  the,    39,   45, 

186 
Whitman,  Walt,  yj    142,  157,  167, 

177,  246 
Worsley,  A.,  199 
Wumaj'^ado,  Prince,  339 
Wu  Tao-tzu,  342,  343 


Yajnavalkhya,  198,  213 

Yakkhas,  22,  25,  325 

Yama,  272,  273 

Yasa,  41 

Yasodhara,  17,  18,  21,  22,  24,  26, 

47,  49.  50.  305 
Yoga,  146,  196.  197,  328 
Yogacara,  251,  252,  320 
Yogavaracaras,  310 


Zen    Buddhism, 
252-258 


171,    172,    175, 


Date  Due 


■»v 


iiiii^^ 


BL1451.C77  _    ^„  ^^^. 

Buddha  and  the  gospel  of  Buddhism, 


Princeton  Theological  Seminary-Speer  Library 


1   1012  00031   2993 


I!;: 


ti  I. 


